Moments with her trickster
by Mobili
Summary: Moments revolving around Akira x Lavenza.
1. Chapter 1: Date on Christmas Eve

**B/N: This is a fanfic assuming you have already completed the true end because there are spoilers ahead. All copyrights to Persona 5 belongs to Atlus.**

* * *

A pair of black loafers gently landed onto the busy streets of Shibuya. While she was standing right in the middle of Shibuya's crossing, commuters did not seem to perceive her presence and simply walked on while minding their own business. Confirming that she has successfully arrived in the real world, she gave her attire a quick check and ensured that her bulky compendium was still with her.

Smiling in satisfaction that everything was in order, she casually merged into the stream of pedestrians and followed whatever direction the crowd was moving. It didn't take long until she caught sight of the person she was looking for; her Trickster, currently still with the rest of the Thieves and had gathered together at a corner near the station square. Deciding that it was only courteous of herself to not infringe into their conversation, she kept a reasonable distance from them and patiently waited for them to disperse.

The streets of Shibuya were many times more crowded than the Velvet Room that she was familiar with, although it took her some effort, she thankfully found an empty seat at a nearby concrete parapet. Lavenza leaped onto the parapet and took a seat, quietly observing the thieves making merry and organizing their plans for tomorrow's celebration. To her surprise, the guy with black frizzy hair had locked eyes with her. He gave her a tactful wave outside of his friends' perception and gave her a quick smile before returning to his conversation.

"Let's meet at Leblanc tomorrow and have a final meeting on the situation." Makoto suggested, rubbing her shoulders as she started to feel the chill from the wind and the snow.

"Yeah, let's do that." Yusuke agreed, with some of the other thieves nodding their head in approval as well.

"…Hey!" Ann cheerfully interrupted. "It'll be Christmas, so why don't we do a last celebration party!?" A suggestion that began an exciting stream of commotion from her fellow comrades. _It's like there's always a party after every significant heist._ Akira recalled to himself, noting that the celebrations were nothing to scoff at ever since Haru's celebration at Destinyland, although there were some unfortunate events that followed up, she had certainly raised the standards way too high.

"I like the sound of that! There better not be anyone that's got plans already!" Ryuji fist-pumped in excitement, infecting the others with his cheery enthusiasm.

"It's settled then!" Ann confirmed, her excitement was also starting to show on her face.

"Make sure you persuade Boss to let us reserve the store for the party." Yusuke reminded, clearly showing his intentions of enjoying a cup of coffee, especially Boss's brew.

"Sure thing." Akira replied nonchalantly, holding back the desire to exploit his caretaker's soft spot for Futaba and let her do the honours instead.

"We're counting on you. Well then, see you all again tomorrow." " Yusuke smiled at his reliable leader as he said his goodbyes to his fellow friends.

"I'm worried about Sojiro, so I'm gonna head home." Futaba interrupted and immediately headed off before the rest could even respond.

"We should go home too." Ann suggested, starting to feel the chills and just wanting to find some place warm for refuge against the cold.

Everyone said their goodbyes and broke off to their respective destinations, Akira shrewdly made a detour around the Station square as though he was heading off as well, but only to meet the girl in blue. She smiled at him and got to her feet as he approached and lightly waved with her free hand.

"Lavenza? Was there something you need from me?" Akira politely asked the resident from the Velvet Room, not very sure that there were still leftover business even after the whole 'god problem' had been settled.

"It is nothing of grave importance, but…" She trailed off hesitantly, unsure of how to phrase her words. "If it is alright, do you think we can take a walk around?" She tiptoed around the topic uncharacteristically nervously.

"Yeah sure, I would be glad to." Akira smiled, glad that at least he wouldn't be left alone on Christmas without plans. "Oh wait, give me a minute." His finely honed senses detecting traces of a familiar presence approaching him. Moments later, Sae emerged from the crowd, smirking at him as she opened the conversation with a tease.

"I didn't expect to find the world's savior alone on Christmas Eve." Sae joked. _Aren't you alone as well?_ Akira retorted mentally, but he knew better than to say it out loud.

"…Can I talk to you for a minute?" She asked. Akira simply gave her a quick nod, conversations between them were quick and direct, and ever since coming to an understanding after the interrogation, they now treated each other with maturity and respect.

"First off, thank you for taking my request." She bowed solemnly in appreciation for all that the thieves had gone through for her sake. "With your actions, I can only hope that public opinion changes…" She paused for a moment, "It will change, won't it?" and hesitantly sought for his assurance.

"We'll find out." Akira casually shrugged his shoulders, feeling that stressing about it at this point was simply a waste of effort.

"True. It was social reform on a scale no one has ever accomplished before." Sae sighed. "But I believe that it will." She now looked confidently straight at Akira, her eyes now brimming with confidence instead of the crazed fervour when she was desperately hunting the thieves down.

"Shido confessed to a variety of crimes. We can arrest him on those charges. But the problem lies in proving him guilty." She paused with her eyebrows furrowed in disapproval. "It'd be difficult unless the correlation between the Metaverse and the mental shutdowns is made."

Akira listened to Sae's comments, his sharp mind already predicting that this conversation would lead to her suggestion at turning himself in, either as a witness and/or a victim of Shido's crimes.

"Akechi, who perpetrated those crimes, has gone missing… You're the only ones left who can testify." She revealed. "…I'll be blunt." A moment of hesitation gripped at Sae's conscience the moment she attempted to convince him.

"You want me to turn myself in to the police." Akira interrupted, causing Sae to flinch at this interjection. She dejectedly chuckled to herself at this guy's quick-mindedness, certainly living up to the name of the tactical leader of the Phantom Thieves.

" *Sigh* Your testimony will be necessary in order to prove Shido guilty. However, that will mean placing you on center stage. You'll be treated as a hero who saved this country." Sae continued, knowing full well that Akira already has a grasp on the current situation. "But there's no way that the police or the public prosecutors will let that slide."

Akira frowned as he continued listening to Sae's explanations. While he didn't become a Phantom Thief in order to gain praise or fame as some savior of the world, but he certainly didn't think that he would attract the animosity of the authorities just simply because of their inflated pride and egos.

A light tug on his jacket's sleeve roused his attention as he saw Lavenza standing beside him, betraying a hint of disappointment on her usually calm expression. Sae rambled on without perceiving Lavenza's presence, ending off with her suspicions that the police may just resort to some radical methods to arrest the entire team.

"You'll most likely be sent to juvenile hall… and placed in solitary confinement. They'll be content as long as they get a testimony without the Phantom Thieves being hailed as heroes." Sae shook her head in disappointment at how the society functioned. "By doing so, it should guarantee the safety of your teammates. Or rather, I'll make sure it's guaranteed." Sae affirmed confidently, brimming with determination that she would at least protect the rest of her benefactors.

"It's to prevent society from becoming distorted again. That's what you want too isn't it?" She asked, Akira now solemnly nodding at her question. "This is almost like… a final deal between the two of us. I'll ask you once more. I'd like for you to turn yourself in to the police, of your own accord." Sae requested once again, hoping to get a firm answer from him directly.

"I'll save my teammates." There was absolutely no hesitation in Akira's decision. There was little left for him to worry at this point with the disappearance of the metaverse and the defeat of Yaldabaoth, which makes ensuring the safety of his friends of utmost priority now. He barely caught the petite girl beside him giving an impressed smile at his decision. "But." He interrupted before Sae could say anything else. "I need a little more time." Akira added while checking his phone, acting as though there were new notifications.

"Very well. You can turn yourself in tomorrow morning." Sae acknowledged. "Have a good night." She gave another slight bow before turning around and making her way off, leaving Akira to his own plans. He waited until the prosecutor went out of sight before addressing the girl from the Velvet Room.

"Well, what a downer right before Christmas." Akira cheekily commented as he smiled at his partner, making a light-hearted response to a serious situation that he had just wound up in. Lavenza chuckled at his optimistic joke and lightly swatted him, acting as though she was reprimanding him for taking the situation lightly.

"Ouch, ouch." Akira made a fake yelp and acted as though it was painful. "Hahaha, come on. Let's forget about this, we have a night to enjoy. Let's go" He invited her with a smile, hoping to brighten up the mood with some positivity.

* * *

Lavenza gawked in awe as she stepped into Central Street. The Christmas lights that had been setup certainly brought the shopping street to a whole new level of festivity. Bright red, green and white neon lights dotted the buildings with patterns of snowflakes, reindeers, Santa Clauses and many more. Couples roamed the streets as they spent their time together, street performers and choirs showcased their talents with dance and songs that matched the occasion. It was as though the entire shopping street had been reconstructed into a circus party.

Akira smiled as he watched Lavenza take in the fresh sight of the celebrations, clearly fascinated by the brilliant and shining decorations. He took the chance and purchased some roll cakes at the patisserie nearby, formulating a plan to introduce the disastrous world of sweets to the stoic girl that had always lived in the velvet room. He couldn't help but mentally imitate Futaba's _MWEHEHE_ as he formulated his masterplan.

"Shibuya's always so hyped up for their celebrations." Akira casually commented and Lavenza turned around with excitement painted clearly across her face.

"I- or rather, Caroline had always been watching this street when she was idle at the gates to the Velvet room." Lavenza revealed, "But today seems much more beautiful, and crowded!" She was almost bouncing on her feet as she waited for an answer from him. Akira chuckled and started to explain the holiday of Christmas to Lavenza. At the beginning she paid full attention to him, but was eventually distracted at some new fancy displays that lined the shops.

While Lavenza was distracted by some fairytale-themed parade that were marching through the street, Akira spotted some Christmas-themed accessories on sale at a nearby chic-fashion shop. He formed a frame with his hands and simulated Yusuke's actions, trying to picture the girl with the festival get-up. Deciding that she would unexpectedly look good with it, he promptly completed the purchase of a pair of hairbands that had brown plushy reindeer horns. Exploiting his competent sneaking skills, he crept up behind Lavenza and stealthily slid the hairband over the blue one she was wearing, causing her to jolt in surprise and turn around, only to get caught in a snapshot when Akira managed to whip out his phone in time and activate the camera shutter.

But their rowdiness only caused Lavenza's concealment to momentarily lapse, causing the people around them to be able perceive her. Murmurs and slight squeals from nearby could be heard as people began noticing their antics.

 _Pfft!_ Akira could only barely contain his laughter as his phone was showing the facial expression of a shocked girl that contrasted with her cute image. Lavenza was trembling half in anger at his prank and embarrassed at being seen by others while wearing a weird article. Akira walked up to her side with an expression of apology and placed a similar hairband on his head as well. "You look great." He gave her a wink, but was only met with a 'hmph!'. Akira chuckled to himself and asked a nearby couple to help them take a photo.

"Come on, smile for the photo." Akira nudged her as he bent down slightly to match her height. Lavenza pouted in defiance but ultimately gave in and smiled at the camera at the last second.

* * *

"Come on in" Akira invited and unlocked the doors to the cafe, going in first to turn on the already offed lights. Lavenza followed shortly and nostalgically observed the place, comparing it to the memories made during the twins' observations. The café was comfortably warm and quiet, compared to the snowy streets that were still bustling with celebrations. She occupied one of the counter seats and started to study Sojiro's coffee beans collection that lined the shelves, trying to memorize and differentiate the various types of blends available.

"Here." Akira soon emerged from the kitchen with a glass of warm water and a slice of the roll cake that he had purchased earlier. "I'll make some coffee for you." He put on his usual apron while preparing the equipment needed for a brew. She appreciatively held the cup of warm water with both hands and enjoyed the lukewarm heat.

"The leader of the Phantom Thieves in an apron... I must share this with my master." Lavenza quipped as she gave her trickster a quick look over, making sure she would be able to relate the details of his attire to her master when she went back.

"The ruler of power with a reindeer hairband, I must share this photo with Igor." Akira retorted cheekily while dangling the phone in front of Lavenza, barely keeping it out of her reach as she desperately attempted to snatch for it while blushing in embarrassment.

It didn't take long before the water in the siphon's bulb had boiled and rose up to its hopper. Akira smirked at a sulky Lavenza who was puffing her cheeks and kept his phone back into his pocket. He added the coffee and let it brew while he got busy with the barista machine.

From Sojiro's lessons, he had already achieved a respectable level of experience and knowledge on how to brew a perfect cup of coffee, and the teacher himself had already given his seal of approval. But the old man is still miles ahead of him.

As the machine began churning to life and leaking out steam from its vents, Akira took out a pair of white porcelain cups from the cupboard below. With adept movements, he steamed the milk inside a separate flask and extracted a shot of expresso from the machine straight into one of the cups. He adjusted the flask while he was pouring in the frothy milk, creating a foamy silhouette of the Phantom Thieves' mascot on top of the latte. Akira completed the design of a Morgana latte art with some chocolate powder that outlined his features. Puffing his chest out in pride as he served the delightful drink to his guest.

"This should go well with the cake." Akira placed the cups between them, pushing the cup towards Lavenza who has sitting across the counter.

"My, It's Morgana. It looks great!" She clapped her hands in joy and complemented the latte art that Akira had created for her, amazed that he was skillful enough to replicate their companion's face on the drink. She was already very much impressed as she watch him connect each step of the preparation smoothly and handling himself with confidence.

"The taste's even better." Akira boasted with a smirk as he poured his own black coffee from the siphon and taking his seat opposite her. It was cute watching her turn the cup round and round while figuring out how to drink the beverage without destroying the art. "Hahaha, just drink it, I can always brew another cup for you." Akira laughed as he got up to prepare another cup of latte for her.

"Then I shall. Thank you for the treat." Lavenza made her thanks in her usual formal and polite format and brought the cup to her lips. Her good table-manners were soon overturned as she hummed in delight at the sweet and mellow drink, unaware that she now had a coffee mustache on her upper lip.

Akira just quietly watched as the girl sampled the roll cake, squirming in delight at her first taste of such a sensational delicacy. _I guess the rumour that all girls like sweets is true._ Akira mused, confident that Ann will soon befriend a new crepes partner.

* * *

The two spent some time quietly drinking their coffee in peace. Lavenza had mischievously confiscated Akira's half of the roll cake when she found out that he had secretly taken another photo of her, now with a foamy mustache on her face. The banter and slight 'physical violence' that had followed drained the rest of their remaining physical strength. _I bet Caroline would be going 'COME HERE INMATE!' all over the place._ Akira thoughtfully compared the differences between the girls from the Velvet Room, wondering why they were so different.

"What an ironic turn of events." Lavenza suddenly commented while looking downwards at her second cup of latte. Akira had already finished cleaning up the machines and was had settled down to enjoy the rest of his coffee when Lavenza had suddenly spoken up. "That you are about to be locked up, just when you have finally escaped the prison within your heart." A tinge of sadness betraying her emotions.

"It's alright. There's nothing more important than them." Akira replied as he took a sip of his coffee and jokingly wondered if it was the coffee or turning himself in that was leaving a _bitter_ taste in his mouth.

Lavenza simply smiled at her trickster, truly happy that he has finally found some good friends for himself and something to live for. "Well, I suppose I need not say anything else if you are already prepared." She finished her drink and placed the cup back on its toaster. "It was delicious." She beamed in joy as she got off the seat. Akira sensibly took this as her message that she was about to return to the Velvet Room. He went around the counter and offered to send her off… to wherever she was going to return from.

"It's alright, here would be fine." Lavenza effortlessly swung her hand before her and the café was immediately tinged with the familiar bluish aura that accompanied the gate to Velvet Room. "Before I go, could you lend me the bookmark I gave you?" Lavenza asked before she stepped across the boundary to her world. Akira opened his wallet and extracted the bookmark from one of its pockets, handing it over to her in confusion about what she wanted to do with it.

Lavenza clasped the bookmark between her hands and a sudden flash of light blinded him momentarily, causing him to instinctively shield his eyes with his hands. As the light subsided, he saw Lavenza handing the bookmark back to him. "Thank you. You can have it back now." Akira just confusedly looked at her and wondered was just done to the bookmark.

Lavenza cheerfully skipped into the gate and revolved on her heels right before the gate closed and smiled sincerely at him. "I love you, my trickster. You are truly the world's greatest man." She declared boldly and promptly disappeared into the depths of the Velvet Room.

* * *

 **A/N : I just had to write this because they only introduced Lavenza, make you do some dungeon and poof! game ends. W0t. Anyhow, Akira's personality would be based off YOU doing your NG+ (or NG++) and simply being a little more cocky and OP, because he CAN. Do tell me if there's anyway I can improve on his cheekiness.**

 **Yes, this will be a Akira x Lavenza story. I'm just going to keep the rating at T at the moment and will modify as per necessary.**


	2. Chapter 2: Life in confinement

Dull concrete walls surrounded him in all directions, empty of any fanciful decorations nor explicit graffiti. The cell only had a grilled window that stood high in a corner of the over four meter wall. It was the only source of sunlight that gave him a hint of the estimated time and weather outside.

The place was seriously cramped, furnished with a single bed, cupboard, table and a stool, and yet there was barely even any space left to move without walking into something. An additional cubicle that was cut into the wall provided the combined facilities of a restroom and shower, separated with a dull translucent plastic curtain serving as a cover.

The cell had been specially prepared for him, a parting gift left behind by the supporters of Masayoshi Shido that had illicitly influenced the High Court from under the table. The presiding judge of the court had passed a sentence specifying that the defendant would be confined inside an isolated cell, alone. And as though to rub salt into the wound, it was supplemented with an extra clause that highlighted the orders that he would be deprived of his rights to take a single step out of cell, unless permission to do so was approved.

It was at this point that Sae had nearly exploded from the farce before her, barely containing her outrage at the depth of corruption that had seeped into society. He was barely in time to stop Sae from making an objection that she would definitely not succeed in. The judge lazily droned on about the details that ensured he would be treated as humanely as possible and that his necessities would be provided for. Justifying that minimizing his contact with other people was meant to protect the other guards and inmates within the facility, underlining that they are susceptible to his unorthodox methods at changing people's hearts. It was only later when would he find out that the paranoia of the authorities eventually led to an informal order for him to be handcuffed and gagged, forcefully if needed, if he was ever required to leave his cell.

But life stuck inside his cell wasn't exactly too bad. If it meant that he couldn't take a single step outside, it also held true that no one else could come in either. It might have been rude that he stereotyped every other inmate to be troublemakers, but his entire time in Tokyo had attracted way too many problems than he was comfortable with, and he didn't exactly feel inclined at dealing with any more.

There wasn't any enforcers within his cell to strong-arm him into obliging the timetable that was enforced upon the normal inmates. This gave him complete freedom on how to spend his twenty-four hours every day. His bath, meals, daily activities and anything else were all within his own discretion.

The only visitor that visited was the public prosecutor and older sister of one of his fellow thieves, Sae Nijima. She had been checking-in recently to give him a general update on Shido's case and pass on any messages from the team, which consisted mostly of the their protests that he had turned himself in without consulting any of them. She had enforced a restriction upon the thieves that she would be left in-charge of the visits, insisting that they go about their own businesses and laying low for time being. It would be disastrous if the authorities were to now issue an arrest warrant for them. He appreciated that Sae had been diligently following up on his status, even though they had been enemies on opposite sides until recently. But she wasn't exactly one could describe to be a 'fun-person' to chit-chat with when compared to the friends around his age. He dearly missed the clamour that always accompanied the rest of the thieves, except Ryuji.

Akira slumped onto the chair, stretching his aching body after being constantly pulled and shoved around by the accompanying officer during his return from the visitor's room. It didn't help that he was carrying a bag full of books while restrained in cuffs. Sae had checked-in earlier for her visit, dropping off a second batch of school textbooks and novels that was left Leblanc. Even now she was still being insistent that he should not waste his time and continue with his own personal studies, even in confinement. Deciding to postpone the self-study session, he stacked the books neatly on the table and kept the bag inside his cupboard, making a mental note to return it to her during her next visit.

Life in the cell was starting to stabilize ever since being confined here for a week or so. It felt as quiet as his initial nights at Leblanc when Morgana had not crashed at his place yet. The days were comparably slower than the time he was juggling with school and Phantom Thief business. His time in juvie so far had passed quickly as he went through most of this waking hours neck-deep into his studies, easily completing the remainder of his second-year syllabus and had begun scratching the surface of third-year content.

But today was not the day, he sluggishly laid himself on the budget steel-framed bed that creaked under his weight. Searching through his pockets and retrieving the familiar double bookmark that he had received as a gift, smiling stupidly at it as he recalled the enjoyable time that he had with both the Twins; Caroline and Justine, and Lavenza herself. The bookmark design remained faithful towards the traits of both its previous owners. One side of the bookmark was adorned with same Crest the Twin's eyepatch had; the Velvet Room's crest decorated in gold, and the other side portrayed a silhouette art of a young woman holding up a beast that resembled a lion. The card was mostly coloured with the blue and black colours that matched their attires. Justine had once explained to him that the art was meant to symbolize the Strength Arcana, which represented the bonds between them. Closing his eyes while reminiscing about his time here in Tokyo, Akira soon fell into a deep slumber as the memories of the people he cherish flashed through his mind.

* * *

Akira opened his eyes, finding himself waking up at the familiar cell within the Velvet Room. He found it amusing that he still hasn't gotten used to the sensation of waking up at a different place he fell asleep at. A quick check of his attire body revealed that he was still dressed in his casuals, instead of the usual prison wear and shackles. Feeling that he probably shouldn't keep the residents waiting any longer, Akira lazily got up and stifled a yawn as he walked out of the now-open cell. Igor chuckled and began clapping the moment he stepped into the centre hall.

"Hehehe, magnificent." Igor praised excitedly as he sized up his visitor, deeply impressed at the progress of his 'rehabilitation'. Lavenza affectionately smiled at him as she respectfully stood by her Master.

"While this might not be the most favourable turn of events, but still… it will do. You chose the correct path with your own volition, holding true to your beliefs for personal gain to the very end." Lavenza praised him with a sincere smile that he had missed dearly ever since he last saw her on Christmas Eve.

She opened her compendium and drew out a glowing blue orb, it gently departed from her hands and landed into his hands. The orb glowed in strength as it materialised into an Arcana card that was similar to those he had seen before.

"The last Arcana you have taken hold of is 'The World'." Lavenza explained in place of her Master. "It represents the willpower to stand up in this world on your own feet, unswayed by no one. That will become the basis of hope toward a future with your friends who share the same belief." She closed her compendium gracefully and proceeded towards the trickster.

"Now that you've gained that power, you are no longer an existence that wanders alone…" Lavenza stood beside him and smiled, motioning for him to accept the gift from her master. Akira grasped the card with his hands and it burst into blueish flames, penetrating deep into his soul.

"My own duties end here as well…" Igor closed his eyes in exhaustion. "…You were truly a remarkable guest." A broad grin playfully appeared on the old Master's face as he began to fade away with the room.

"Lavenza." Igor called out to his assistant. "The march of time never stops, and the journey must be travelled. Only with strength can one endure suffering and torment." He glanced a look at Akira, causing him to wonder if he was being addressed as well. "Go forth and follow in your siblings' footsteps, and observe the answers that they have come across." A cryptic advice given by her master, it was probably his attempt at advising the girl about her future actions.

She curtsied with her free hand and bowed her head in reverence at her Master's departure. Igor flashed his signature grin before completely disappearing, leaving behind fading particles that dimmed off in time. Akira kept a moment of silence in respect for the Master of the Velvet Room, grateful for his assistance from the time when he had to confront Yaldabaoth. Lavenza giggled at an unusually solemn Akira and quietly interlocked her fingers with his, causing him to freeze up at the sudden contact.

"*Sigh* Guess I'll catch you later?" Akira scratched his neck shyly and bid goodbye to the resident as the entire Velvet Room began to dissolve within the growing light. The girl only replied with silence and tightened her grip on his hands, looking down at her feet in contemplation. Akira wistfully took in the sights of the Velvet Room that he may never step foot into again, since the Master of the room is now gone and all. The last thing that crossed his mind before everything faded into the light was whether he would be able to see Lavenza ever again.

* * *

Akira woke up again, now finding himself back in the isolation cell. But the main difference since he fell asleep was that a girl with platinum blonde hair dressed in a Victorian blue dress was now sitting at his bedside, smiling warmly at him.

"..." Akira paused for a moment. _Yup, I'm officially nuts._ Speculating that he may not be as mentally sound as he assumed to be. _Maybe Tae can do something about this, I'm starting to see things._

"...Must have returned to the wrong world. Good night." Akira positioned his elbow over his eyes and acted as though he was going back to sleep.

"What? Hey Trickster! What are you talking about?" The girl was immediately flustered at his jest and shook him by the shoulders. _Vision, Checked. Hearing, Checked. Touch, Checked. This just might be reality._ Akira resigned himself to his impromptu reality check and opened his eyes to reconfirm whether she was really here, although his vision was now blurred by Lavenza's thorough shaking.

"Just kidding." Akira laughed as he sat up and got off the bed. Looking up to only notice the absence of sunlight that was shining in before he slept. Turning to check the small alarm clock at his table. "Half past seven…" He sighed in exhaustion as he took the already-cold dinner tray that had been slid through the door slot. He returned and placed the tray onto the table, before shifting the chair so that he could sit directly in front of Lavenza who was still seated on the bed, eyeing his actions curiously. "So… what's this all about?" Akira questioned as he got comfortable on the hard wooden stool.

"Master has granted me the privilege of freedom, just as he had done for my siblings." She stated as-a-matter-of-factly. Akira raised his eyebrows at the mention of her siblings, not being able to recall meeting anyone else other than Igor and her 'Twin' selves in the Velvet Room. "…thus, I have decided that I would like to walk this path together with you." While Akira was flattered that she was willing to accompany him in the days to come, he wasn't so naïve to simply accept it and simply say ' _Okay, glad to have you.'_ just because he was feeling a little lonely in this cell. Heck, it IS the very reason why he felt that he shouldn't just accept her offer, he could at least do so once he regained his freedom.

"While I'm glad to finally have some company in this god-forsaken place, there's no need for you to go through this as well." He looked straight into her eyes, trying to dissuade her while figuring out her thoughts and emotions from her eyes. Akira considered that having the thieves give her shelter for the moment would be a way better choice than restraining her here with him. For what it's worth, he just didn't feel it was right to make her pointlessly suffer.

Lavenza giggled as she observed Akira furrowing his brows deep in thought. She was glad he was still the same caring young gentleman he had always been, even before she had regained her true form. She leaned forward and touched Akira's cheeks, causing him to jerk in surprise as he was being distracted by his internal struggles.

"There is no need to worry." Stroking his cheek affectionately, hoping that the contact would help appease his concerns for the time being. Akira closed his eyed and meekly accepted her touch. "Time spent with you is simply all I ask for." She reiterated, making sure her trickster understand that her determination would not be deterred by something as trifle as discomfort. Akira smiled in appreciation and pulled her into an embrace, thankful for her everlasting support and continued presence in his life. Lavenza giggled quietly as she ran her fingers through his frizzy hair and immersed herself within his arms, thankful to also have a cherished partner just as her siblings do.

"Trickster, I-" Lavenza was about to say something when Akira interrupted her by whispering teasingly into her ears.

"Akira." He insisted. Preferring to hear her call his name, rather than a title or nickname. In fact, he preferred _Joker_ even more than _Trickster_ , especially since he was already accustomed to that form of address.

"Yes? That is your name, right?" Lavenza asked, not entirely sure where he was coming from.

"Say it, not 'trickster'." Lavenza could practically feel his breath on her ears, she squirmed every time his breath tickled against her ears.

"I… I." She hesitated, feeling unknowingly shy at the thought of calling his name. "A- Akira." She stuttered at the start, but managed to pull through successfully at her second try.

"Hahaha, good job." He laughed in satisfaction as he broke off the embrace. Giving her head a pat before turning around to retrieve the dinner tray he had set aside earlier. He opened the cutlery packet and removed the plastic cover, revealing the plain dinner served that consisted of rice, veggies, meat and a small jelly dessert. "Itadakimasu." Akira said his thanks for the food before starting on his meal, he was a few bites into his dinner when he realised that Lavenza was just quietly observing him as he ate.

"Erm… Do you… want some?" Akira was faced with the suddenly realisation that there was someone else present in the cell as well. He was totally accustomed with eating his meal alone.

Lavenza couldn't help but laugh at his clumsiness for a good whole minute. He might be the suave and valiant trickster that she had always loved, but his rare clumsy side was a stark contrast to how he carried himself when around the thieves.

"Yes please, if I may." She bowed politely at him as she answered. Akira chuckled at her usually-polite mannerisms and scooped a spoonful of rice and meat for her.

"Aah-" Akira cooed teasingly at her. Trying his very best to not burst out laughing if she did respond correctly.

"?" But to his slight disappointment, Lavenza only curiously tilted her head sideways as she wondered what he was trying to do, or say.

"Say 'Aah'." Akira repeated with the spoon still hanging mid-air. _Patience… Patience!_ Clearly getting overly excited at the chance to feed a girl. _The guys_ _would be so jealous of me!_ Akira thought of the bachelors among the thieves as the girl in front of him acknowledged his instructions.

"Aah-" Lavenza obediently listened to his instructions and did so. Akira carefully guided the spoon into her mouth, before she realised what he was up to. The rest of the bite was instinctive to her as she realised she had been led to give him a chance to feed her. She pouted and stomped her feet in mock displeasure at being tricked. Akira laughed and took a bite of the dinner himself, wishing that he would soon get to eat Sojiro's otherworldly curry again.

* * *

 **A/N : Now, to do Akira some justice, I had to do an arc that involved his life inside juvie. There was a good whole in-game time of 1-2 months that was just skipped all the way till 13 Feb, and the time skip simply downplayed the suffering that he would have to go through while inside. Just FYI that I may not be the clearest on how the judical system or juvie hall treats their inmates, but this is how I imagined it to be if you actually wanted to lock up someone with 'powers' that can easily change the hearts of people. I mean, people usually shun those that are different from them, and all.**


	3. Chapter 3: Dreams of days passed

Akira leaned against the headboard as he watched his partner sleeping comfortably in his laps, softly combing through her smooth hair as he whiled away the time by listening to her calm breathing. Most of the lights in the cell had been turned off after dinner, save the ones above the table which he usually kept on after sunset so that his cell did not plunge into total darkness.

Mornings after Lavenza arrived had been especially startling. Every waking moment he would be greeted with a pair of golden eyes peering directly into his inky black ones. He had initially assumed that she had just slept later and woke up earlier than he ever did, but only realised later that she had never slept whenever he did, awake all alone throughout the nights.

After many days of trial and error, and dozing off before she did, Akira had finally managed to put her to bed before he fell asleep. Lavenza curled up unconsciously in her sleep and cuddled against his warmth, smiling comfortably as she nuzzled him. Akira chuckled to himself as she's behaving exactly like how Morgana does whenever he sleeps on top of him.

From his understanding so far, Lavenza had explained that the residents of the Velvet Room did not require any of the basic necessities that sustained life, unlike normal human beings. They had no need to eat, drink, breathe nor even sleep, but instinctively still do so to upkeep a semblance to human life. _Maybe it's because she was created in the image of a human, that she knows how to function as a human on a basic level. I mean, Morgana surely knows how to cat better than any of us._ Akira joked to himself as he tried to erase the mental image of a human Morgana habitually licking himself clean. Even so, he didn't expect that they would have so much trouble trying to make her body fall asleep for the first time.

Being cooped up in a cell gave them both an abundance of time to work with and Akira had taken the opportunity to teach her about things like technology, fashion trends and even current affairs that a resident of the Velvet Room may not be familiar about. It came to Akira's attention that she was rather well-learned regarding to the details that revolved around his life, but her understanding of the rest of the physical world was probably sub-par at best. Magazines, manga, board games, playing cards and even his own school textbooks were perfectly viable sources of knowledge that he could utilise in teaching her anything she did not know and it especially helped that she had a mental capacity that could rival Futaba's, easily absorbing all that Akira taught without the need for him to repeat himself over and over again. Then again, he had made sure that they kept up a casual pace and that she didn't feel overly burdened by the new things she was learning every day. It wasn't as though she was going to have to sit through an examination for this.

The only dissatisfaction that he was feeling right now was that he is currently unable to bring her out to show her the outside world in its entirety. He wished he could bring her to the art gallery at Ueno to appreciate the art pieces on exhibition, maybe she would be totally mesmerised by the stars shown in the planetarium at Ikebukuro or they could even spend an enjoyable date together playing at Destinyland.

Akira sighed in discontent as he carefully slid the pillow underneath Lavenza's head, hoping that he wouldn't wake her up accidentally. Chuckling to himself as she merely mumbled incoherently as she adjusted her head to a more comfortable position, Akira pulled the blankets over them and hid underneath the covers as well. Pushing a lock of platinum blonde hair away from her face and taking one last look at his partner's unguarded sleeping face, Akira closed his eyes and tucked himself to sleep.

* * *

 _Mid autumn, 15_ _th_ _October._

It had been a few days since the psychotic breakdown of Haru's father, President Okumura. The thieves had called for an emergency meeting over at LeBlanc in order to discuss about their current situation. A depressing mood hung in the air as everyone mulled about their current fall from grace, with the public now assuming that the righteous Phantom Thieves had murdered President Okumura after issuing him a calling card. The injustice weighing heavily upon their shoulders and they simply had no way of clearing their names at the moment. Haru arrived at the meeting moments before Ryuji and Ann could further voice their dissent at the public's reaction.

But her arrival only brought the thieves more dire news, leading them to suspect that the current turn of events might have been orchestrated by an opposing faction. Makoto had an impression that they might have been set up by the real culprit, a sentiment that Futaba had harboured suspicion to as well. Akira wasn't ignorant enough to not notice how quickly the metaphorical shit had hit the fan. Considering that events had been unfolding around them uncontrollably recently, his biggest worry at the moment was that the enemy had already ascertained their true identities while staying hidden in the dark.

Makoto immediately regained control of the meeting before anyone got too overly anxious due to their own paranoia. She warned all of the thieves to maintain their everyday façade and to act as normal students for the time being. Meanwhile, she will implement a temporary hiatus to the Phantom Thieves' activities until the upcoming midterms were over, or at least when she has drafted up plans for their countermeasures. Taking this as a good point to end their meeting, the thieves decided to break off for the day and went about their own businesses. Akira tacitly instructed Morgana to see Haru home, making sure that someone watched over her while she faced this ordeal. The cat nodded in consensus and chased after the curly haired girl.

Akira took a quiet stroll around Shibuya after they had disbanded, watching as the crowd mindlessly hustled through the streets. The sky had turned cloudy while he took the train here, with dark clouds threatening to rain at any moment. The white noise from the streets somehow soothed his emotions, flooding his mind with senseless thoughts that distracted him from the current situation. Looking around the busy streets, nearly every store with a television was broadcasting the news regarding the Phantom Thieves and President Okumura's alleged murder. A pang of guilt ate away at his heart whenever the horrible photo of President Okumura's moment of breakdown was shown on the news. He and the Phantom Thieves had reached out and offered Haru their help with good intentions, but little did he expect that they would be the one that had escalated matters even further.

Akira took out his phone and activated the Metaverse Nav, feeling the urge to move his body and indulge in some combat to sate this dark frustration that someone was toying with them. He had barely managed to control his emotion in consideration that the thieves looked up to him as a calm and composed leader, but he was allowed to vent freely when alone and out of sight.

This wouldn't be his first time sneaking off into mementos alone. His initial reasons of coming to mementos alone was that he simply didn't want to inconvenience everyone else while sating his cravings for a little action and exercise. Getting the annoying cat off his back sure gave him some breathing space for time alone.

While his initial trips caused him some anxiety and caution on his part, his latest dives had been more liberating as he had gradually gained the strength to fend for himself. There had been many situations where Akira only managed to escape an ambush with a hair's breath, barely making it back to the entrance with only a few medicine and ammo left. And the Reaper that constantly hunted him down had not been any kinder, constantly pumping bullets at him without a single care in the world. Akira had faced off with it so many times that he practically has its attack patterns perfectly memorised, giving him the courage to stare straight down the barrels of that savage dual-pistols. Fortunately, due to his consistent repetition of such forays within mementos, his strength had grown to a point that the weaker shadows now run away in fear at the mere sight of him.

As his surroundings finished warping and his attire now changed to his sleek Phantom Thief uniform. Akira entered the subway station that would lead him to mementos and arrived at the starting platform, noticing that both girls were outside of the Velvet Room today. The Twins had been in the middle of a conversation when they had noticed Akira entering Mementos alone again. Caroline only made an exaggerated pose as she sighed, as though trying to say that the inmate should know his place. They had witnessed every single time Akira had emerged from the floors below, and the resulting sight was not pretty whenever he had engaged the reaper. Tae had been extremely pissed when he had once stumbled into her clinic with his back laden with bullets, he made the careless mistake of actually healing the wounds without removing the physical bullets and they were stuck inside the moment the outside skin healed over.

"So we meet again, Inmate." Justine greeted as she trotted towards Akira, a faint smile on her face as she looked up at him. "I never expected you to turn up just as when Caroline was asking about you." Her dead-pan tone made Akira wonder whether she did say it on purpose, or was merely making small talk and had a slip of tongue. He could only laugh as he watched the other twin making a shocked expression and quickly running towards them.

"Wha- What are you talking about!?" Caroline shouted in panic as she arrived, but before she could even retaliate against her twin's jest, Akira stepped in and decided to play along with Justine.

"Hmm, did you miss me, Caroline?" Akira teased as he squatted down slightly and patted Caroline on her hat. He spotted Justine smiling away as though she did not hear anything, simply looking on at the situation with great interest. And true to her character, Caroline self-destructed.

"Wha- Wha-No! I mean, yes… Wait, No!" Her eyes darted all over the place as she faltered over her confusion, having a hard time deciding whether she wanted to insist on her 'tsun' stance against him or just being honest since Justine had already divulged her longing for him.

"Hmm? But I came here because I wanted to see you." Akira smiled with the most charming smile that he could muster. While it was fun and all to tease a girl who reacted like Caroline does, it certainly wasn't gentlemanly of him if he let it drag to a point where it hurt her feelings.

"Oh- oh… really? *Ahem*" Caroline cleared her throat as she regained her senses, regaining her aloof posture that she usually adopted when talking to him. "Hmph! If you need help with fusions or whatever, talk to Justine! You better be prepared, Inmate! The shadows are noisy today." Caroline warned seriously, trying her best to put up her bad-cop act to gloss over the embarrassment from earlier. "Or is there something you need of the two of us?" She added after giving some thought to his arrival at such a timing, significantly easing up on her aloof attitude as she was worried if the Inmate had come here looking for them.

"I want to talk to you two." Akira softly stated, reverting back to his serious demeanour. The whole purpose of coming to Mementos was that he had decided to take up the twin's challenge as a form of punishment and training for himself. An outlet for him to lose himself in the charge of battle and forget about his worries, albeit for the time being.

Justine visibly frowned at him, as though she had fully seen through him and his intentions for accepting the examination now, especially when Akira had first dismissed Caroline with a lazy 'I'll pass' when she first offered the challenge to him.

"Hee… I see!" But Caroline wasn't one for such subtleties. To her, the Inmate had finally grown a pair and was now bringing the fight to them, therefore feeling that it was only respectful of her to accept his request and put him where he belonged.

"Have you fully prepared for our examination?" Justine asked as she approached her twin, carefully eyeing the Inmate without breaking eye contact. "Our goal here is rehabilitation. Ending your life now would greatly contradict that. Should you fall… you will regain consciousness immediately." Her golden left eye staring deeply at him; worry, anger and even a little sadness all storming within it.

"Hopefully you're prepared to lose! Oh, and there's not even a one-in-a-billion chance you'll win, so you should just forget it." Caroline jested while tapping her baton on her shoulders, sneering at the Inmate in an attempt to intimidate him.

"I'm expecting my reward of an embarrassing secret." Akira cheekily replied as he recalled Justine's earlier offer. Even if he was feeling pretty negative at the moment, he didn't feel obliged in letting Caroline get away with everything she says.

"Wh-What!? We are still doing that?" Caroline was flustered at the mention of an embarrassing secret that Justine had promised to reveal if the Inmate did triumph over them. "W-Wait! There's no need for this!" Clearly nonplussed at her Twin's illogical rationing to further motivate the Inmate to try harder.

"Let us, begin, Caroline." Justine just decided to carry on with the conversation while ignoring Caroline's protests, leaving her to growl quietly in anger as she was being left out of the. "We will cordon off a portion of this area for the examination. That will limit potential interference." She had explained the guidelines of their battlefield with her normal tone of voice, but her excitement for battle was starting to leak out as well.

"Don't worry! We will make it look really familiar for you!" Caroline offered as she seriously got into her battle mood, pumping herself ready for battle.

"Now then! Do not disappoint us!" Justine energetically announced as the environment gradually morphed into a replica of the Velvet Room he was familiar with.

"Now… let's get started, Inmate!" Caroline tapped the batons on her hands as she excitedly gathered her powers for the fight.

"You needn't hold back… Though you will soon realize that you lack the time to even consider that option." Justine condescendingly warned the inmate, she certainly did not want to finish him off in a single hit while he was unprepared. Akira could only laugh at the way she usually masked her concern through underhanded comments and subtle insults.

"Get ready! Here we go! Vajra Blast!" Caroline opened the fight and summoned forth a Slime Persona and launched a Vajra Blast directly head-on at him. Justine had took the opportunity and flanked the Inmate from the side, complementing the attack by executing a Triple Down with her own Bugs Persona.

"Abaddon." Akira simply stayed at his spot and carefully watched their attack patterns. Now that he was fighting alone, he had to rely on his own senses instead of Futaba's help. A blind offensive while being outnumbered was a foolish way to go down, and his aesthetics didn't allow him to put up such a shameful fight. The grotesque persona manifested and absorbed the physical skills with its viscous body, causing the attack to be completely shut down. Akira seized this opportunity to counterattack before they had the chance to change their tactics.

"Gigantomachia." Akira called out and the Abaddon Persona slammed its colossal mass into the ground with an immense force and shook up an earthquake with lava surging out the cracks. The twins immediately reacted to the attack and attempted to evade it, but the sheer area of effect made it extremely difficult to do so. The ground cracked unevenly and randomly and could only be possibly evaded by sheer reaction speed. The twins retaliated by attempting to sneak a hit through Akira's blind spot while evading, but Abaddon's sheer size simply meant that the attacks always would wound up hitting it instead.

"Agneyastra." Akira decided on another heavy destruction spell that would be effective on two separate targets. Abaddon roared in rage and summoned fiery meteorites from the heavens, raining hell upon the Twins who had been expecting another quake attack. Caroline had managed to resist the onslaught with the assistance from the Slime Persona, but Justine was fiercely roughed up the by sheer physical impact of the two attacks.

"Diarahan!" Caroline called out her Pixie Persona, performing a much needed heal on her twin. A blue light soon enveloped her sister and recovered her strength, restoring her health to its original. But the moment Justine was healed, she had a panicked look on her face and was shouting and pointing towards Caroline.

"Caroline! Behind you!" Justine shouted towards her other twin. Caroline turned around only to find that the inmate had already slipped through her blind spot and had already approached at a point blank distance. She instinctively kicked off the ground in a desperate attempt to gain some distance, but the Inmate had already predicted her reaction and had included it into his plans.

"Vishnu, Phanta Rhei." Akira swapped out the Angel of the Abyss and brought forth the divine Hindu deity. With a swing of its mace, saw-blades of wind materialised and mercilessly crashed into its target. Caroline fiercely parried the blades with her enforcing baton while somersaulting backwards, avoiding the worst of the onslaught as she regrouped beside her twin sister and receiving a Diarahan from her this time.

"Kuh! You're pretty good, Inmate!" Caroline grunted tiredly as she regained her posture, mentally bashing her herself at giving the Inmate such a wide opening. Justine smiled in agreement and was impressed at the sheer progress of her Inmate ever since they had met in April, be it his combat abilities or strength of personas, both had changed tremendously.

They both knew that he had been steadily getting stronger due to the gradual reduction of wounds that Akira would receive whenever he returned from his recent mementos excursions, and that the Personas he had been fusing recently were now levels higher than those they had even requested of him while he was completing his penal labour.

"It seems our Inmate has come a long way." She chuckled quietly at her observations, recalling the first time they had requested of him to procure a Jack Frost with the Mabufu skill. "Caroline, do you still think that the Inmate's Personas are still… 'Super weak'?" She teased her other twin while imitating Caroline's tone back when she had mocked the strength of the Inmate. "Know your place, Inmate!" Caroline clicked her tongue in defiance as she lashed out against the Inmate, exuding the familiar blue flames that signalled the change of Persona.

"The purpose of this examination is to ascertain your true power. We will continue until you fall." Justine announced as took Caroline's hands into hers and both jumped backwards into the air. A Jack O' Lantern soon appeared at their original location and casted Maragidyne at Caroline's orders.

Pillars of fire began randomly erupting out from the ground, forcing Akira to activate his Third Eye and swiftly avoiding the areas that had its temperature swelling, but soon realised that the patterns of the eruptions were meant to encircle and trap him from all directions. But just as Akira was about to formulate a counterattack, Justine promptly intercepted him and summoned a Jack Frost that 'Wee Hoo'-ed as it manifested.

"Bufudyne!" She commanded and a sizeable explosion of ice began materialising above him. Sensing the incoming attacks, Akira halted in his tracks and prepared himself with the remaining time he had. With the twin's perfect synchrony, their combo totally consumed the Inmate in a torrent of fire and ice, following up with an explosive burst of hot steam that blanketed the area.

The Twins remained on guard as they watched the steam fade away, scanning the site and watching for further movements. As though waiting for their line of sight to be separated, Akira blindsided Justine and ran towards her in a low crouch, swiftly drawing his dagger and aiming at her. Retaliating to his bloodlust, Justine responded by blocking the slash with her clipboard that was way sturdier than it looked. Caroline was kept busy by Akira who was shooting his pistol with his other free hand, keeping her agitated while preventing them from ganging up on him. Capitalising on her slightly more impulsive nature, Akira purposely fired one straight towards her face and instantly followed up with a second shot at a slightly higher angle. Caroline's insane reaction speed managed to parry the first bullet away, but as her outstretched hand remained swinging in the air, the second bullet caught her baton and forced her hand to recoil backwards unnaturally and totally crumbled her posture. Looking up as she finally detected an increase of power, a Black Frost had been levitating over them and sneered mockingly at them while concentrating even more power for its next attack.

"Ice Age." Akira issued his orders and the Black Frost immediately spat forth a torrent crystal nova that hailed down from above, freezing everything it touched and exploding in an immense fountain of icicles.

"Maziodyne! Garudyne!" Was shouted by twins as they began their counterattack. The vortex of wind surrounded them as a protective wall and ruthlessly shaved down the ice before it reached them, Caroline's bolts of lightning savagely exterminated any approaching freezing projectiles as they hunted the inmate down.

"Odin." The mythical Norse god descended at the response of Akira's beckoning. The stout figure gave his divine spear a few quick swings and easily dissipated the lightning before it even dealt any real damage. "Do it, Thunder Reign!" The moment it received its orders, Odin immediately took a few explosive steps forward and flexed the hand that held the divine spear. With a decisive step and dynamic swing of his arm, the spear propelled into air as it took off with a sonic boom and tore through the air faster than the speed of sound.

The spear tore through the howling vortex as though it was a hot knife against butter, causing Justine to instinctively avoid the projectile that was flying straight towards her. As the spear revolved in a spin through the air, the serrated edges of the spear had easily nicked onto her black tie and had forcefully carried her off in its trajectory, slamming her harshly against the wall at the far end of the hall. Justine coughed in pain as the recoil had knocked the air out of lungs, while being dangled helplessly against the wall.

"Tch! Justine!" Caroline immediately ran up to her other Twin while casting Maziodynes at the Inmate, preventing him from closing in. But she soon realised that all the lightning bolts in the area were gradually being manipulated and drawn towards the spear, noticing the impending danger, she immediately gave the spear a firm kicked and tried to pull Justine away from it. It was only a short moment later that the spear illuminated in a waltz of electricity that ringed violently as it discharged its massive voltage. The twins didn't have the time to escape far enough from its area of effect, but at least they managed to avoid the worst of it. Justine struggled onto her feet while being supported by Caroline.

"Diarah-" Caroline was about to heal her Twin again, but Akira would not let that come to pass.

"Seth! One shot kill!" He summoned the Persona that had given him so much trouble to acquire that matched the twins' specifications, purposely utilising it as an Easter egg for this moment. The piercing blast drove itself into Caroline's abdomen and tossed her into a clumsy tumble alongside her counterpart, gasping for air as she blanched from the hit. The girls supported each other as they shakily stood up, panting heavily from the damage they had received. Caroline had a bitter realisation on her face that the Inmate had just dissed them with a Persona they had requested from him.

"This is… a surprise…" Justine mumbled as her usual calm and collected face now distorted in pain, each breath she took were heaves that spread the pain throughout her body. A sense of shame gripped her as she realised they had been the ones holding back all this time, all for the sake of some theatrical "examination". It was the first time she felt her instincts screaming at her to not restrain themselves any longer.

"How can this be?" Caroline complained in agony, thinking that she had been sorely mistaken at always underestimating the Inmate. He had emerged victorious from every round of attack, perfectly guarding and executing his counters with minimal damage to his self. While she had arrogantly looked down at him and held her powers back, the Inmate had already factored in her personality and mentality into his strategies.

"He has proven himself equal to us… Or perhaps even stronger…" Justine concluded absentmindedly, her strength spent and mind now bleary from all the damage, they were the ones that had been backed into the corner.

"Could that one-in-a-billion chance… actually happen? Caroline doubtfully questioned herself, truly baffled at the chances that the Inmate may just be the person that held the potential and chance to defeat them.

"If this is truly the case…" A tinge of excitement began leaking into Justine's voice as she fell into a trance, trembling in delight from the thrill of battle.

"Justine?" Caroline called out, worried that her twin was acting weirdly out-of-character.

"Listen close, Inmate! Show us what lies beyond our limits. Show us who you are! Who we are!" Justine demanded with an intense display of fervour, venting an unbelievable amount of blue flames as she manifested her Persona.

"Justine! What are you? Tsk!" Caroline could only click her tongue in annoyance and follow her twin as she reinitiated combat.

"Now, Inmate… Give me everything you have! Riot Gun!" Justine immediately performed an upgraded version of the gun skill, introducing a cloudburst of plasma-like bullets onto the battlefield. Akira re-summoned Abaddon to neutralise the bullet storm, but Caroline was not about to make the same mistake twice by foolishly following it up with a physical attack.

"This will be hell for you! Psycho Force!" Caroline shouted as she summoned the Mandrake Persona, the psychokinetic attack mercilessly smashed into the humongous demon and shattered it into countless bluish shards. Akira urgently dived roll out of the psychic waves that cleaved through his Persona, only barely escaping as his ankles were momentarily hit by the waves, leaving a trail of pain as though a car had driven over his legs. He cursed under his breath as he immediately prepared to change his Persona, already noticing that Justine was about to re-launch her offensive and keep up the combo.

"Cosmic Flare!" Justine shouted as the Onmoraki Persona behind her channelled an avalanche of nuclear energy that scorched all that it touched.

"Metatron!" Akira invoked the summoning of the metallic archangel, spreading its glorious wings to intercept the incoming nuclear attack. He could feel his exposed skin beginning to burn under the profuse heat that crept in, his pistol already malfunctioning due to its precision parts melting under the heat. Using his sleeves to mask the uncovered portion of his face, Akira slipped out from Metatron's back and made a direct rush towards Caroline, initiating her within close quarter combat. Chaining a quick lunge into a side slash, Caroline was desperately blocking Akira's ceaseless assault. Planning out his decisive strike, Akira feinted her with an intentional downwards slash which was intuitively blocked by her baton. Knowing that she had fallen for his trap, a smiled flashed on his face for a moment.

"Argh!" Akira grabbed Caroline's outstretched hand and proceeded with a precise wrist lock, causing her to scream and drop her baton. Justine was immediately baited towards them as she heard her other twin in pain, instinctively stopping the spell's channelling. Sensing the lapse in Justine's judgement, he promptly reacted by sending Caroline flying into the air with a point-blank God's Hand, sending her directly crashing into her other Twin. He had to end the fight before he had to deal with even more powerful skills.

"It's Show-Time!" Akira stylishly pulled off his mask and summoned one of the strongest Personas he had, Lucifer. "Get ready! Morning Star!" The fallen angel invoked a caustic ray of light that rapidly descended towards the twins without giving them time to recover. Caroline immediately took it upon herself and tried to cover Justine from the blast, hugging close as they braced themselves for the following impact. A devastating explosion occurred at the instant the beam made contact, pulsating with turbulent shockwaves and bringing utter destruction to the entire place for a good five seconds.

Akira exhaustedly kneeled down as he watched the explosion clear up. His ankles were swollen from pain and his left wrist was broken from the recoil of the God's Hand that he had channelled through his body. If the twins still did not go down after this attack, he had planned to concede defeat in order to retain some semblance of dignity and honour, a lesson that was taught by his strategy and shogi master, Hifumi Togo.

Slightly limping over when the blasts had subsided, Akira found the twins totally incapacitated in the middle of a ravaged crater, its surfaces seething with heat as the concrete had started to liquefy in certain areas. He quickly carried them up on to his shoulder, one on each side, and painfully transported them to a safer area of the room that had not been destroyed. He summoned forth Ishtar and placed her blessings of Salvation upon everyone and checked his body for any lingering wounds while he waited for them to regain consciousness.

"Urgh... what?" Caroline was the first wake up, wincing as she shook her head. Akira went up to her and squatted down, placing a hand on her back and helping her sit up, her usually aloof expression was absent and was replaced with one of disbelief. Justine was roused by the voice of her twin and she moaned incoherently while she stood up on her own feet.

"We… lost? To a human…?" Caroline questioned herself in denial as she finally stood up with the assistance of both Akira and Justine. Akira gave both of them a pat on their hat as though it he was the one rewarding them for their efforts. To his surprise, Caroline suddenly bounced on her feet excitedly, as though she had just regained all of her energy prior to the examination.

"Hahaha! I can't believe this actually happened to us! It's a little strange…" Caroline beamed in an unusual level of excitement, tossing away her usual arrogant and hostile impression. Justine smiled quietly to herself, glad that Caroline wasn't feeling too dejected at this loss as well.

"Even though I should feel humiliated, I feel… refreshed. Like I finally was able to leave something behind. Hahaha… Our sisters are gonna get mad at us. It turns out even the rulers of power can't measure everything!" Caroline joked while brushing off their loss. Some strange terms coming out of her mouth that Justine took notice of.

"Sisters…? Rulers of power…? Caroline… What did you just…?" Justine reiterated the words, as though trying to regurgitate their respective memories from within her mind.

"Hm? Did I say something weird?" Caroline carelessly brushed off her slip of the tongue, not even paying attention to the words that she had just spoken.

"…." Justine paused as she looked down in contemplation, but recovered almost as fast. "…Inmate. It seems the time has come for us to fulfil our promise." Justine continued with her usual poker face. "I will now tell you our embarrassing secret." Akira thought it was funny how she was always going to say something embarrassing without looking embarrassed.

"WHAT!?" Caroline jumped in astonishment. "We still have to do that!?" 'No way, no way….' Was clearly written across her face as she panicked at what Justine was going to reveal.

"To be perfectly honest…" She started. "From time to time, a strange feeling of unease falls over us. It is almost as though we are not ourselves, or that our true selves are in a place far, far away." Revealing a piece of information that described the anxiety within her own heart.

"Huh?" Caroline could only squeeze a confused reaction at what she was hearing.

"We are meant to be leading inmates through rehabilitation, yet we have doubts about our own validity. Could there be anything more humorous than that?" Justine chuckled in self-depreciation as she deeply pondered about their own existences.

"Oh, so that's what you meant…" Caroline sighed in relief, clearly relieved it wasn't actually some shameful past that she want hidden.

"Are you not ashamed, Caroline?" But for some reason, Justine became very indignant at Caroline's reaction. "…What did you think I was going to talk about? Perhaps the time you nearly wept from fear when you first witnessed a Persona fusion?" Justine questioned her other twin with a hint of malice as she dug up her shameful past.

"Wha!?" Caroline covered her face in embarrassment as her twin began spilling out some of her own embarrassing moments that she had hidden away from the Inmate's knowledge.

"Or about those intimidating poses you had practiced, that you're too embarrassed to use on the inmate?" Justine immediately mimicked the pose that Akira somehow thought it resembled some characters from JoJo's.

"S-Stop! My heart can't take this!" Caroline trembled in both embarrassment and shame as she writhed under Justine's verbal assault.

"*Sigh* After I lost to you… albeit for a brief moment… I saw something." Justine turned and re-addressed the Inmate, leaving her twin alone to writhe in embarrassment. "It was then that I knew for certain… Just as you have your goal of rehabilitation, we too have an objective we must achieve."

"We're supposed to act as wardens for our master, right?" Caroline timidly asked as she slowly recovered from the shock that she had just received.

"Then how do you explain this? It is completely unrelated to that task." Justine materialised the glowing bookmark that was floating above her hand.

"Well, um…" Caroline could only mumble a reply, unable to give a proper answer to Justine's question.

"…Inmate. I will now disclose the results of our examination." Justine ended that conversation and decided to announce her analysis of his strength. "If I had to describe your current state, I would say you are: He Who Will Save The Souls of Humanity." She smiled and approached him, extending her hand outwards with the bookmark still floating above. "To commemorate your victory, I entrust this bookmark to you." Gifting him the mysterious bookmark that probably held the answers to their identities.

"You don't mind?" Akira bent down slightly and accepted the bookmark, Justine demurely backtracked with her hands behind her back as she retreated to Caroline's side.

"If you continue to hold ties with us, we will surely arrive at the truth. That is how I feel." Justine declared with a certain amount of confidence that their fates are already intertwined.

"Ugh. I stay quiet and you just gotta go saddling him with more work." Caroline shook her head and slightly rolled her eyes at her twin. "Well, I won't tell our master about this. It'll just be one of our secrets. Wait… speaking of secrets, you only told him mine! This isn't fair…" She complained in indignity that she was the only one embarrassed so far.

"You would like one from me?" Justine asked as she coyly pulled her cap slightly downwards to block her eyes from being seen. "Recently, whenever the inmate takes prolonged absences from our chamber…" she paused for a moment as though catching her breath.

"…I miss him." She shyly followed up, with a cute tinge of red now blushing on her cheeks. "According to human standards, directly conveying this emotion may be somewhat uncomfortable. But that is how I feel." And with a surprise statement hidden at the end, Justine delivered the punchline. "Caroline is probably the same way." She conveyed while giving a side-glance to her other twin.

"I-I..!" Caroline immediately got flustered again at Justine's revelation, totally not emotionally prepared that she would pull a fast one like this.

"I simply… wanted you to know." Smiling as though she felt a burden being lifted off her as she confessed her emotions. "Oh, you understand this is a secret to be kept between us, yes?" Justine asked while reverting to her usual stoic expression.

"I can't choose between you." Akira awkwardly scratched his cheeks, not entirely sure how he would accept the affections from a pair of twins.

"Choose…? I mean, if you did, the other would feel bad." Caroline asked in confusion at why the Inmate HAD to choose.

"How should I say this…? I would not resist you choosing the both of us. Is that strange?" Justine added while fidgeting with her clipboard, deciding that sharing her affections for the Inmate with her other twin, Caroline, would be the right thing to do.

"O-Ok, that's enough of that." Caroline awkwardly interjected before the conversation steered further into weird territories.

"…Yes. Any further discussion may interfere with our work" Justine agreed, already hiding her shyness from earlier and reverting back to her calm self.

"Things are gonna go back to how they were before. This special inspection was a one-time deal. Though… I think we might feel a little differently when we're watching over you from now on… That means we're gonna be stricter than ever! Y-You got that, Inmate!?" Caroline firmly warned the Inmate that they will be watching his movements ever more closely now that they are closer to each other than ever before.

Akira only snickered and retorted ' _Yes, yes, yes…'_ with a mock attitude of exhaustion, giving both girls a well-deserved head pat for all that they have done.

* * *

Lavenza opened her eyes drowsily as she recollected the dream she had prior to waking up. Her body feeling the lethargy of waking up for the first time. All she could do was smile stupidly at the memories of the Twin's that faced the Trickster in combat, his suave and gallant visage darting across the battlefield and asserting his dominance confidently. And now, that very tenacious fighter laid beside her in bed, sleeping incautiously as he breathed quietly.

She could distinctly recall the emotions of the Twin's that were now resounding within her own heart, both harbouring a deep longing for the Inmate. It made her feel truly blessed that she would be the one given the chance to be able to stay by his side like this.

Giving him a light peck on the cheeks, Lavenza laid back down on the pillow and closed her eyes, hugging Akira's body closely to hers, letting her consciousness sink back into the darkness as she fell asleep again.

* * *

 **A/N: My apologies for the rather 'lateness' of this. The crazy weather had me down with a fever and flu the past few days. Spent most of my non-drugged waking hours trying to type this story out.**

 **This SHOULD be the last of the confinement arc, next chapter would be his release day. (If I follow my chapter planning, ahahahas.)**

 **Now forgive me while I go crash.**

 **(If you do spot some weird english, please do pm me about the specifics and I will get to the changes when I'm... alive)**


	4. Chapter 4: Friend from the Velvet Room

_February 13_ _th_

Akira stood outside the dreary walls of the Juvenile Hall, slinging the cumbersome duffel bag that held all of his personal belongings over his shoulders. The last remnants of the winter cold slowly tickled his face as it lazily drifted under the shine of the rising spring sun. Taking in a deep breath, he felt his lungs absorb and relish the fresh air from his surroundings, unlike those from the stuffy cell that he had been stuck in for the past few months. Despite the cooling weather and newfound freedom, Akira was sweating buckets at his current distress; which was thinking about how to introduce and 'reveal' Lavenza's existence to Sojiro and everyone else.

Sae had checked in earlier in the morning, reporting in for her regular visit. She had informed him that his innocence had been proven during Shido's confession. With Akira's sentence being rescinded, Sae had already proceeded with the initial paperwork for the cancellation of his probation and confinement, and would be completing the process by this visit. To his surprise, an officer arrived at his cell within moments of his return and ordered him to pack up his belongings and begin the out-processing. Akira didn't even have enough time to discuss with Lavenza about their future arrangements and could only give her a quick order of _'follow me'_ while he complied and stuffed his belongings and books into his duffel bag.

From his cell to all the way outside, Lavenza had obediently stalked Akira as he was being dragged around. She quietly eyed her surroundings as though she was a foreign tourist, curious about the people and the purpose of the facility she was now walking through for the first time and last time. While he was fairly confident that normal people whom are unaware of the Velvet Room nor Mementos would be able to perceive her existence, he wasn't sure whether he could keep her hidden before the thieves when he returned. They had met briefly after they had been released from the cells in the Velvet Room, but anyone was able to hear Morgana's voice after hearing it once in Mementos.

"Right, Lavenza. I need you to listen to me." Akira asked as he maintained a straight face while tip-toeing around the topic, not exactly sure how he was going to ask her of this. As much as he wanted to introduce her to his friends, making fresh greetings right outside a prison was simply terrible TPO. But he didn't want to cause any misunderstandings that it was as though he wanted to hide her existence from others, especially so if it may hurt her feelings.

"Yes?" Lavenza hummed questioningly at his call, busily taking in the new sights outside the cell that she was seeing with her own eyes for the first time.

"For now until we arrive back at Leblanc, introduce yourself if someone notices you. But if they don't, just keep on following me." Akira stated his demands quickly as he noticed a familiar yellow vintage Beetle car driving towards him and honking several times. He had already caught on that Sojiro was coming to pick him up as Sae had mentioned that she shouldn't keep someone waiting, and that it was a 'that man'. The girl nodded as per usual without any complaints, not wanting to cause him any extra problems.

"Hey. You kept me waiting. Geez." Sojiro pulled over right in front of Akira, with one hand waving out of the window lazily. The driver was dressed in his usual cream white Sunday-best shirt with a matching coloured top-hat with red and blue stripes circling around. "To be honest, I didn't really wanna come… But Futaba just wouldn't stop bugging me." Akira really wanted to retort that he would rather head home himself in this situation, but decided to keep silent in his gratitude for a convenient ride home.

"Anyway, you're a free man now, aren't ya? It'd look bad on me if you did something again under my watch." He smirked at Akira. "Alright let's go home. It's cold, so get in quick." Sojiro instructed offhandedly as he adjusted the rear mirror, apparently not noticing the platinum blonde-haired girl that was standing beside Akira the entire time. Looking at the two-doored coupe, he had to somehow get in with Lavenza, without Sojiro noticing any weird actions from him.

Akira made a quick hand gesture and motioned for Lavenza to follow him, which she immediately complied and trotted along. He swung to the back of the car and placed his heavy duffel bag into the trunk. Checking to make sure she was near him as he closed the boot, Akira imagined the following actions he would be taking as he circled over to the passenger side.

With a deep breath, Akira opened the door with his non-master hand and immediately used his other more proficient hand to pull Lavenza into a secure embrace as he turned her around and lifted her off her feet, causing her back to be pressed tightly against him. She had initially struggled when he surprised her with his sudden actions, but calmly cooperated when she had discerned his intentions of sneaking her into the car. He fluidly lowered himself onto the passenger with the girl seated on his laps.

Akira took a quick glance at Sojiro as he closed the door, hoping that he wasn't staring at him or something else. But the old man was just looking elsewhere while rhythmically tapping on the steering wheel, with his usual bored expression as he waited for his passenger to get on. As he heard the door shut, Sojiro immediately shifted the gear stick and released the parking brake.

"Alright, let's go." Akira said as he buckled up his seat belt and looked towards Lavenza to see if she was okay as well. The girl quietly nodded as she shifted into a position where she sat perpendicularly against him, placing both hands on his chest as she leaned her head against him. Sojiro gave a short grunt and stepped on the accelerator, slowly inching the car forward and driving into the crowded Tokyo traffic.

* * *

The car's engine lazily droned as the car wriggled forward, trapped along the highway as the traffic slowed to a crawl. The radio was facing a desperate challenge against the noises of exhaust and honking that were buffeting the car from all directions. While the car wasn't exactly spacious to begin with, having a girl sitting on top of him for such a long time was starting to feel pins and needles in his legs. He had attempted to doze off so that the ride will be over quickly, but Akira was consistently getting distracted by the sweet fragrance from Lavenza's hair that tickled his nose whenever she moved on his laps.

"It's not moving at all…" Sojiro complained impatiently while shaking his head. _I could swear he was also complaining the last time we were stuck in traffic._ Akira pondered, trying to recall the first time Sojiro had driven him to Shujin High to make his introductions.

 _"Due to the railway incident this morning, widespread delays have impacted the various lines and…"_ The newscaster reported mechanically over the broadcast. Akira could barely stifle a yawn as the vibrations of the car and the warm heat of a girl hugging him slowly disintegrated his energy levels.

"Another accident huh? Heh. Reminds me of that day back in April. Remember when we went to introduce you at the school?" Sojiro chatted, trying to start a conversation with the younger guy in order to sate his boredom.

"I'm trying to forget." Akira jested, feeling that a little sass might liven things up. He thought he had heard a little snort coming from Lavenza, who was burying her face in his chest.

"You never change, huh?" Sojiro sighed in resignation at the kid's habits of getting a little cheek in whenever he could.

"So do you." Akira deflected cheekily, sorely missing exchanging snarky comments with the old man ever since he was locked up.

"Thinking back, I was pretty awful to you, throwing you in that storage room all by yourself." The old man ignored his comment and groaned in regret. Akira could only chuckle to himself as he knew that the only reason Sojiro had to keep him at LeBlanc was because of Futaba's prior situation, and he wasn't going to put any blame on the old man. Heck, living in the up at the attic of LeBlanc actually gave him the biggest room he had ever lived in. It could even house the entire Phantom Thieves with space to spare.

"Then again, soon you're gonna be..." Breaking off his comment weirdly, Sojiro cleared his throat before continuing. "*Ahem!* You made some great friends here. You'd better thank them when we get back, all right?" He casually lectured with a rare smile on his face.

"Yea." Akira nonchalantly replied before coming to a realisation. _Wait… You mean they are waiting for us to get back? Damn, I wasn't ready for this…_ He quietly swore to himself. Whipping his mind into overdrive, Akira quickly recalled the geographical layout of LeBlanc's surroundings. Predicting that Sojiro would most likely alight him straight at the front door of the café before parking his car at the back alley, he probably had a few minutes to rehearse the plan with Lavenza before he would be 'forcefully' escorted in. Deciding that it would probably be best of him to not keep her presence as a secret from the thieves, this was his only best and foremost chance.

Akira immediately brainstormed the possible conversation topics and imagined the personalities of his close friends whom were awaiting his return. _Makoto and Futaba's intelligence would be able to see through any shaky lies if I'm not careful, Ann and Haru have great observational skills with regards to reading people and their feelings, and Yusuke's eccentricity is practically a ticking time-bomb. Ryuji is just dense, no worries_. He decided that while it wasn't right of him to lie to his close friends about the relationship between him and Lavenza, he was under no obligation to walk up straight to them and broadcast it out loud.

Even if he wanted to do so, Akira had never properly discuss with Lavenza about the extent of their current companionship. While he was fairly sure that already weren't on the level of mere friends, a platonic relationship seems to be the closest to how he would describe it. But no matter the amount of heat he was going to get from the thieves, his immediate priority was not to get himself labelled as some sort of lolicon that was into young girls. _The Nijima sisters could just be the ones putting me back into the cell._ Akira quietly joked as he shuddered at the imagination of them looking at him in disdain.

* * *

"We're here." Sojiro brought the yellow car to a stop at the front of the café, just as Akira had predicted. He gave a quick tap on Lavenza's back, whom promptly bounced off his laps and out of the car, excited at being able to return after some time. With a tired heave, Akira got out of the car while massaging his sore legs. After thanking Sojiro for the ride, he went to retrieve his duffel bag from the trunk and watched as Sojiro drove the car off to find parking.

"Okay Lavenza, please take off the concealment now." Akira asked of her politely, giving her head a quick pat as she closed her eyes while concentrating. It was for a slight instant, but Akira could feel the atmosphere around him distort as though he had just returned to the Metaverse. Passer-bys who began taking notice of the platinum blonde-haired with her beautiful contrasting blue dress began gossiping from afar, wondering if she was some foreign teen model. Akira looked around and confirmed that even normal people would be able to see her now, ensuring that the first requirement of his plan was going smoothly. All that was left was to let Sojiro perceive her when he returns.

"Thanks." Akira thanked her while rubbing the top of her head, causing her to giggle underneath while trying to stop his hand from further messing up her hair.

"I suppose they are waiting for you inside." Lavenza revealed as she pinpointed her extraordinary senses onto the 'customers' that were inside the café at the moment.

"Yea. Anyway, since your concealment is off, I plan on reintroducing you to them if they do not remember you." Akira shrugged, thinking that trying to sneak her in at this point was plain risky, especially when he was sorely lacking in information about her powers.

"Then I will leave it you." Lavenza readily agreed. It didn't matter to her whether anyone else knew about her, as long as she can stay beside the one she loves.

"Hmm? Who's that?" Sojiro asked as he came out of the shop's side alley, surprised to see Akira and an unfamiliar young girl talking right outside his cafe.

"Oh! Let me introduce you two." Akira acted smoothly without hesitation. "Lavenza, this is Sojiro Sakura; Master of the Café LeBlanc and my guardian while I'm was here on probation. Everyone calls him 'Boss'." The old man scratched his cheek awkwardly as he was being introduced to the young girl who was just looking at him with a curious expression. "Sojiro, this is Lavenza, one of the assistants that has been helping us with 'that'." Akira looked around to see if anyone was within earshot, deciding it was more prudent to avoid any direct mentions of the Phantom Thieves in public. Sojiro could only 'oh' quietly at his indirect implication of her relation to the thieves.

"Good afternoon, Sojiro-sama. My name is Lavenza, it is a pleasure to meet you. Please take care of me hereafter." Lavenza curtsied gracefully with both hands holding her skirt out from her body, reverting to her usual polite demeanour when dealing with others.

"Well, er... It's nice to meet you, Lavenza-chan?" Sojiro took a moment to process and articulate the non-Japanese sounding name. While she looked even younger than Futaba, her behaviour seems to be way more mature, causing him to be unsure on which honorific would be appropriate for her. "Well, let's head on in, this is no place to be standing around and chit-chatting." Sojiro prompted as he gestured to Akira with a slight jerk of his head.

Akira nodded and pushed opened the wooden framed door, creaking slightly as it turned on its hinges. Everyone inside immediately perked up the moment they heard the doorbell chime as someone entered, looking towards the door and finding that their leader has returned. Futaba immediate broke into smiles and cheer, while Makoto demurely waved from beside her. Yusuke only gave him a side-glance and a cursory salute, and Haru, whom was sitting beside him, smiled sweetly at Akira's safe return. Ryuji had this smug grin on his face when he entered.

"Hey there!" Ann had already gotten up from her seat and called out to Akira, who was still standing at the door as he gave his friends a quick look over. He was glad that they were still the same old pals that he had missed since Christmas.

"Woohoo! Namasteeeeh..." Futaba jumped out of her seat and bolted straight for Akira, easily overtaking Ann and Ryuji who were now tailing behing her. She had started her dashing approach with excitement, but immediately trailing off after she noticed the girl that had followed him in, with Sojiro closing the door behind them. The rest of the thieves who had been following Futaba also noticed her weird intonation and looked towards her line of sight, noticing the same person that she did.

"Good afternoon, it's been awhile since we last met, Phantom Thieves." The thieves immediately raised their eyebrows at her knowledge of their involvement, wondering if they have met before.

"Once again, my name is Lavenza. Please take care of me from hereafter." Curtsying politely as she replicated another flawless greeting that completely awed the group.

"Oh? This girl looks quite familiar…" Yusuke asked as he cocked his head in contemplation as he tried to recall her face from his memory, fairly sure he would not forget a beauty such as she.

"Really?" Ann asked suspiciously as she eyed the girl who looked more foreign then she does, pretty sure she would remember meeting someone with such unique features.

"My! She looks like a doll, doesn't she?" Haru squealed in delight as she totally went into her own 'my pace' mode, side-tracking from the topic about the girl's familiarity.

"Erm guys? We met her after we got whisked away from the real world by the Holy Grail." Futaba pointed out, easily recognising her identity from her photographic memory that perfectly captures everything she has seen before. "In that Velvet Room thing after Akira saved us from those prison cells, remember?" She reminded them one more time, while contemplating about the girl's sudden arrival after all this time.

"Oh right… I got scolded by her…" Ryuji shrunk behind the rest of the thieves as he recalled she had raised her voice at him before, all because of his usual confusion when someone is explaining something. The thieves laughed at Ryuji's expense as the guy tried to hide in embarrassment that he got completely shut down by a little girl like her.

"Okay guys, I know you all missed each other and have plenty to talk about, but let's not talk right by the door shall we?" Sojiro urged the group of teenagers whom were crowding the entrance and blocking his way.

"Right! Come sit over here!" Makoto exclaimed as she ushered Akira to one of the booth seats they had been occupying, the thieves all moved together with him as though he was a VIP, flanking him on all sides. Ann took the inside seat beside him while Futaba and Makoto sat returned to their originals. Ryuji, Yusuke and Haru took the counter seats that were closer towards the main group. Lavenza quietly took one counter seat for herself that was closer towards the public phone, while maintaining a slight distance from the rest of the group.

"I gotta head out and grab some extra groceries. You guys do what you have to." Sojiro quickly took off his white shirt and hat before heading out in a more comfortable attire, leaving the thieves plus one on their own.

"Man! It went well yeah!?" Ryuji cheered happily, stoked that his leader and best friend was finally out of prison.

"I'm so glad we didn't give up." Makoto exhaled in relief, glad that they had persevered throughout the entire ordeal.

"This was certainly worth the effort." Yusuke praised everyone for their tireless work, Akira's release was a well-deserved reward for their achievement.

"We didn't know what to do once you were gone… But then we realised something." Ann pensively mumbled, recalling the despair that everyone felt when they first found out Akira had turned himself in for their sakes.

"Even if we don't have the Metaverse or any other special powers, we can still change reality." Ann's mood took a quick turn as she pumped her fist energetically, pleased that they managed to accomplish this feat.

"We were runnin' around everywhere we could since New Year… It musta been over a month." Ryuji sighed tiredly as he massaged his own shoulders, still feeling sore from all the running around.

"Not just us. Everyone who believed in you joined us!" Haru added in excitedly, recalling the enormous support from all sorts of people pouring in, the thieves had even wondered how Akira managed to build such an extensive network during his stay here.

"Thanks to that, we've got our leader back!" Futaba made a triumphant pose that resembled Kamen Riders, commemorating their victory as heroes of justice.

"Thanks." Akira chuckled at Futaba's over exaggeration.

"What're you talkin' about? You're the one who took the hit for us." Ryuji retorted, laughing at the fact that they should be the ones thankful to him instead.

"They treated you fine, right? Actually did you lose some weight?" Ann asked while giving Akira a quick look over, thinking about all the possible cruelties he must have faced.

"It would be understandable, I've food in prison is quite foul… So, what did you eat?" Yusuke asked curiously, never really knowing if the rumours he heard about prison life was true.

"Was it bugs? Fermented mackerel? Or maybe durian?" Futaba asked as she bounced on her seat, listing off all the food that were literally foul.

"You're missing the point…" Makoto face-palmed at Futaba's miscomprehension, the girl seriously goes off tangent at the weirdest moments.

"Foul?" Lavenza cocked her head quizzically, not really understanding what was so foul about the food that Akira had shared with her.

"Eh!?" Akira interjected before they caught onto Lavenza's question. "N-not really. The food was almost like the basic stuff you can get at a budget canteen. Nothing special." Akira could only give the food points for edibility, null for taste or presentation.

"Eh, you're gonna get some good food soon enough though. Boss is out getting' stuff for our party right now. C'mon, everyone's back together! It's time to celebrate!" Ryuji immediately tried to liven the mood, diverting them from the gloomy talk, but his efforts were wasted due to his slip of tongue.

"Everyone…" Haru depressingly trailed off, everyone who realised who she was referring to also started to feel wistful.

"Well… not quite everyone…" Futaba dejectedly added.

"Right… Morgana." Ann felt a little nostalgia at the memories of the noisy cat that always tried to hit on her.

"…He may have been the key person on this whole mission. We even considered what he would do when we were about to give up." Makoto commented, recalling about the times when the memories of him re-motivated the thieves during their mission to liberate their leader.

"Mona totally woulda done something right? That cat would never quit on you." Ryuji added, thinking about how overly stubborn that cat was.

"He was always there to pull us forward." Haru closed her eyes while fondly remembering her friend.

"Morgana truly was the engine of the Phantom Thieves." Yusuke commended. _He's the engine because he can transform into a car?_ Akira quietly joked to himself, thinking it would be insensitive for him to say it out loud.

"He was a car, after all!" But Ann immediately took the words from Akira's mouth and attempted to make a gag, contrary to his attempts to be subtle.

"I wanna see Mona again…" Futaba mumbled. The whole room was blanketed in an awkward silence, Akira played with his fringe while wondering if there's anything he could say to cheer everyone up.

"He never returned to the Velvet Room even after Mementos disappeared." Lavenza calmly interrupted while lazily spinning her bar seat around, swinging her feet that were too short to reach the floor.

"Eh?" Akira, Makoto, Futaba and Haru had managed to understand the meaning of what she had just implied; informing them that she has not seen him return to the Velvet Room even though he was a being that was born there. The rest only looked at the girl confusedly, unsure of what she was referring to. And as though matching the timing of the silence, the café's door creaked opened as it jingled the doorbell lightly.

"Huh? That was quick, Boss-" Ryuji turned around in surprise, expecting that he would take a much longer time while considering the amount of food required. Everyone turned towards the door, expecting Sojiro to walk in, but instead it was an all too familiar black cat that nonchalantly strolled through the door.

"Someone call for me?" Morgana haughtily asked, acting as though he was ignorant to the conversation inside.

"Mona!?" Ryuji shouted in disbelief. Everyone quickly stood up from the seats as they wanted to get a clearer view of the cat that they had not seen for months, looking at him in disbelief. Lavenza sat quietly on her chair, watching the thieves as they reacted to Morgana's sudden return.

Morgana let himself in and deftly propelled himself up to one of the counter seats beside Ryuji, joining the conversation as though he didn't go missing at all.

"What're you doing here!? I-I mean, didn't you disappear?" Ann asked in disbelief, still not trusting her own eyes that the cat before her is real.

"Looks like the only me that disappeared was the one in the Metaverse." Morgana remarked while indifferently giving his paw a lick.

"…Huh?" Ryuji faltered, confused as usual.

"If that's the case… you stayed in reality as a cat?" Makoto asked, the more intellectual ones finally understanding what the new girl had just meant by him never returning at all; the cat had been in the real world all this time.

"When I woke up, I was out in Shibuya looking like this."Morgana explained.

"That don't make any sense though! I mean, if you were alive, you shoulda come back right away!" Ryuji fumed angrily, indignant about the fact that he had actually missed the guy.

"I…" Morgana fumbled around for an answer. "It was right after I had said goodbye. It would've been awkward to come back so soon…" The cat didn't want to face the awkwardness of his quick return after such an epic farewell.

"It seems he finally learned how to be tactful." Yusuke joked at the cat's ridiculousness.

"He's grown!" Futaba acted with a dramatic shock as she played along with Yusuke.

"I knew you guys had found your witness, so I was just waiting for Akira to get discharged. Well done on that, seriously. You pulled it off even without my help." Morgana bragged as though he had a part in their accomplishments.

"You've already returned to your normal conceited self!?" Makoto retorted at the cat's sudden attitude swing.

"I'm sorry I worried you all." Morgana apologised. "Oh can I borrow the shower before you all rush to hug me? I was stray for so long I think I might smell." The cat gave himself a quick sniff, finding his current state unattractive to be comfortably hugged by the girls.

"This ain't the time for a shower, you stupid cat!" Ryuji rebutted, still not forgiving the cat for his stupid stunt.

"Give us our tears back!" Even Haru had complained, feeling betrayed that she had cried over him all this time for nothing.

"You are unforgivable!" This time Yusuke played along and jokingly scorned the cat as well. Futaba jumped out of her seat and pulled at Morgana's cheeks, causing him to growl in pain.

"Hrgh! Sh-Shtop ith!" Morgana meowed as the girl playfully tugged his cheeks, making seem as though it was a physical punishment. Giggling cheerfully after she had released the poor cat from her clutches.

"Talk about a harsh welcome…" Morgana complained, certainly not expecting the hostility to be targeted at him.

"This is how it should be." Makoto chimed in while Haru just giggled at the usual rowdiness of the thieves.

"Matters are finally back to normal." Yusuke smiled assuredly, grateful at the peaceful conclusion of their journey thus far.

"Right!" Ryuji cheered as everyone just laughed along and chatted away heatedly. Akira gave Lavenza a quick wink and checked to make sure she wasn't feeling too left out of the conversation. The girl just smiled and waved at him reservedly, indicating that she was okay.

"It's great that you're back and all, but what're you gonna do now?" Ann questioned the cat on his future plans, seeing that he wasn't bound to societal duties and obligations, unlike themselves.

"Hm? Well, I've been thinking…" Morgana stated as he went into thought.

"About what?" Ann crossed her legs while asking the cat, leaning forward so that she could hear him clearly. The rest of the thieves also started to pay attention to what the cat was about to say.

"How to become human, of course." Morgana revealed. The thieves looked at him questioningly wondering if he was serious.

"Oh really?" Makoto inquired, not exactly sure about the entire plan of transforming from a cat into a human.

"I might've learned that I'm not a human now, but that doesn't mean I can't turn into one!" Morgana declared as though he had come across a revelation.

"Now this is just a guess… but I think I'm still here because you all remained cognitive of me…" Morgana suggested. "Even after the world's distortions disappeared, you kept me in your minds. That means you guys think there's a place for me in the real world." Akira gave a quick glance to Lavenza for confirmation, but she gave a slight shrug suggesting that she didn't really have concrete proof to support nor deny that statement.

"Of course! This is where you belong, Mona!" Futaba exclaimed, glad to have her furry friend back.

"*giggle* She's correct." Haru agreed, overjoyed to be able to spend more time with an unexpected friend that had changed her entire life.

"…Oh yeah! Sorry for buttin' in and all…" Ryuji interrupted. "But we heard from Boss… You're goin' back home next month?" Ryuji asked in confirmation. The thieves all looked down dejectedly after the news of him going back home was brought up.

"Yea." Akira replied in affirmation, feeling a little guilty that the news had came from Sojiro instead.

"Can't you stay here?" Ryuji asked. "Sure we proved you're not guilty, but people're still gonna label you there, aren't they? Ain't it just gonna be uncomfortable goin' back?" The blonde was almost convinced he would face the same persecution he had when he first arrived.

"Well…" Akira looked down pensively. If he could, he would like to stay in Tokyo and spend the rest of his school life with them. But he had to return home, not because he liked it better back there, but because he needed to do so by facing his past and not run away from it.

"What's the matter? We were all so excited a moment ago." Makoto tried to break the depressing mood "…How about this? If our leader is leaving, the Phantom Thieves are truly disbanding, correct?" Makoto rhetorically asked, with some of the thieves nodding their heads in agreement with her.

"Then today we can celebrate Akira's release… and commemorate the day of our disbandment." Makoto suggested, hoping that the celebration would be a perfect excuse to forget about the sadness that their leader was leaving.

"Pfft! What kind of commemoration is that?" Ann immediately broke into smiles and laughed at Makoto.

"I was serious when I said it…" Makoto pouted slightly when Ann was just laughing at her even though she was trying to be serious.

"It sounds like a good idea to me." Haru supported her fellow senior's suggestion.

"I guess you're right. We just gotta double our excitement for today!" Ryuji cheered as well. _No, you just want a reason to party._ Akira mentally retorted at Ryuji.

"*Ahem!* I know this is sudden, but I've decided to go with Akira. He's pretty special, after all." Morgana announced. "If I stay by him, I might be able to figure out how I can become human too. Plus, we need someone there in case he turns back into a delinquent." He rattled on as though Akira's agreement was already accounted for.

"Let me think it over." Akira almost face-palmed at the face that he still had to deal with the cat harassing him in the future as well. "Damn… He's gonna bug me to go to sleep early every night…" Akira groaned under his breath and the thieves just laughed at his silly predicament.

"What!? I'm not so naggy!" Morgana complained. "Either way, I want you guys to add my farewell party to the one we're having tonight!" The cat demanded a party for himself as well.

"I dunno… Is that important?" Ryuji sarcastically brushed off the cat.

"You're not leaving for another month right?" Haru asked Akira as she tried to recall the exact details that she had heard from Sojiro.

"Yea. There should be a month or so till then." Akira could only remember the brief dates, thinking that he would need to ask him for more precise details on the process.

"It is far too early for a farewell party." Yusuke pointed out, thinking that they could easily arrange for another party when the dates got closer.

"That'll just muddy the purpose of this celebration." Makoto objected, a farewell party at this point in time would just make them think about Akira's leaving even more and sour the mood.

"Then it can be my comeback party! Nobody can complain about that, right!?" Morgana protested as he stared at everyone with an unsatisfied look. "I demand sushi! Sushi!" The cat threw a tantrum about the Japanese delicacy that he never had the chance to have. Akira thought he saw Lavenza perk up at the mention of sushi, but she had returned to her normal expression by the time he had looked over.

*ring* The bell of the door rang as Sojiro walked in with tons of plastic bags filled with food and snacks.

"Man, you guys're loud. I could hear you from outside." Sojiro jokingly complained as he walked into the shop. "Oh, I was wondering why I heard meowing. The cat's back." Sojiro was surprised as well, having not seen the cat since Akira's arrest and thought it had escaped.

"Chief! They're so mean!" Morgana whined, but all that Sojiro heard were the meowings of a cat.

"Noisy as always…" Sojiro grumbled. Ryuji nearly laughed at Sojiro's usual rough way of speaking.

"Hey! I'm not some… normal cat!" Morgana disagreed, insistent that he wasn't as noisy as how normal cats would be.

"I can't understand what you're saying to me, you know. Here." Sojiro dug something out from the pockets of his apron and fed it to Morgana.

"No, I would much rather have sushi than something like-" The cat broke off even before he even finished his rejection. "Hmprh!? This is delicious!" Morgana exclaimed in surprise as he savoured the delicious new food.

"Sheesh, what an assertive little guy… I wonder where he got that from." Sojiro uttered as he watched the cat finish up the rest of the treat.

"Not me!" Akira quickly interrupted as he could already see where this conversation was heading to.

"If Morgana becomes human, he may end up just like Akira." Yusuke jokingly pondered as he compared the two.

"Oh, I can see that" Haru decided to join in as well, giggling as she imagined a pair of smug Akiras.

"Totally possible." Futaba betrayed him as well. _Hell no._ Akira rolled his eyes at being compared to a cat

"Me be like him…!?" Morgana went into deep thought on whether he could become someone like Akira, a Phantom Thief that he had always looked up to.

"Well, if I became a cat, I don't think I will end up like Morgana." Akira putting in a well-timed jest that made everyone laugh.

"I'm no-… Wait, I can't say I'm not a cat now." Morgana growled as he realised that saying he wasn't a cat was futile at this point. "I definitely don't want to be like Ryuji though." Deciding to tease Ryuji as he normally did.

"What was that!?" Ryuji stood up and glared at the cat.

"It's things like that. You get angry so fast. Oh, and you're vulgar." Morgana poured even more oil into the fire.

"You little…! Why don't you go disappear again!?" Ryuji roared in anger at the cat's mocking tone.

"Ugh, shut up! We're supposed to be celebrating, not fighting!" Ann yelled at the two childish guys that always picked a fight with each other.

"They're at it again…" Makoto sighed as she shook her head.

"The world's changed, but you guys are the same as ever…" Sojiro also shook his head at the ruckus these two always made.

"Seriously… That weirdo Inari." Futaba snorted as she threw a curveball at him.

"Who are you calling a weirdo!?" Yusuke rebutted in disapproval at being called a weirdo, by another weirdo.

"In any case, we're all here!" Ryuji decided to ignore Futaba and Yusuke's squabble. "Let's kick this party off!" He eagerly announced the start of the party that everyone had been waiting for.

"Very well…" Yusuke detached himself from quarrelling with Futaba to help Sojiro out with the food.

"Sojiro! I want sushi!" Futaba demanded while pulling some snacks out of the shopping bags. The guys all filed into the kitchen and began bringing dishes of food that Sojiro had prepared earlier, ranging from finger foods to plates of curry dishes.

"Here you go." Akira placed a plate of non-spicy curry especially for Lavenza, knowing that she had zero tolerance for spicy food after observing the food she had ate back in the cell.

"Thanks, Akira." Lavenza gave a sweet smile and bowed her head slightly, Akira could only laugh that she was still keeping her formal self when others are around her. "Is there anything I can help with?" She asked, wanting to be of help to him.

"It's alright." Akira looked around, noting that Yusuke and Ryuji had already served everyone else while they were talking. "Why don't you just enjoy the food? I will introduce you to everyone later." Akira smiled and gave her a quick pat on the head before returning back to the kitchen. The girl nodded and quietly started on her food, humming in delight at the marvellous curry that Akira had always been talking about.

"Do you like it?" Haru decided to use this chance to talk to the new girl, shifting her chair closer to her so that she could have a closer look at the girl.

"Yes, Akira was always talking about wanting to eat Sojiro-sama's curry. Now I understand why." Lavenza nodded in approval as she paused her meal and turned towards her new conversational partner, deeming that it would be impolite of herself to eat while talking.

"I see…" Haru pondered while thinking about how long they have had known each other. "Oh! I forgot to introduce myself, I'm Haru Okumura. It's nice to meet you, Lavenza-chan." She had forgotten to introduce herself even before talking to the new girl.

"It's nice to meet you too." Lavenza politely greeted the senior girl, causing Haru to smile happily at her new friend.

"Oh hey, what've I missed?" Akira approached them with two glasses of iced latte, handing the sweetened one over to Lavenza. The girl delightedly received it with both hands, enjoying the sweet latte that Akira had always brewed for her.

"Nothing much, we just talked about you saying that you wanted to eat Boss's curry." Haru replied.

"Oh. Anyway, Lavenza, this is Haru Okumura; Heiress to Okumura Foods and also more famously known as the Beauty Thief." Akira accomplished a perfectly hilarious introduction, purposely doing so to make it less formal.

"So much for that…" Haru groaned at the fact that the thieves were never going to let go of that nickname. Akira laughed to himself as he recalled the first time they had met in President Okumura's palace.

"Okay, seriously. She's the team's green thumb and fellow coffee enthusiast." Akira corrected her introduction with a more proper version. "And Haru, this is Lavenza. An assistant from the Velvet Room as you have recalled. Please take care of her while she's around." He kept her introduction brief and simple, leaving it to Lavenza herself to decide how much she wants to reveal to the others.

"Alright, it's always nice to have more girls around!" Haru applauded cheerfully that the girls will have an additional member. "Hm?" She was about to say something else when she looked at Akira's side, where Lavenza apparently had finished her portion of curry. "Lavenza, would you like seconds?" Haru asked while offering to get her another plate of curry. Lavenza looked at Akira as though she was waiting for his permission.

"Err, I think we should go around making her introductions before we carry on." Akira suggested, giving Lavenza a tap on her shoulder and she promptly got off her seat with used utensils in hand.

"Okay. Everyone's nice, so you don't have to worry, alright?" Haru reassured Lavenza, thinking that she would feel stressed by all the older people around her. She watched as the young girl trotted behind Akira as they headed to the kitchen.

"Here, put them in the sink." Lavenza complied with Akira's instructions and placed the utensils into the half-filled sink. Turning around, they bumped into Ryuji who was just coming in to get a second serving for himself.

"Oh hey! Akira and…" Ryuji greeted, trying to recall the complicated name he had just heard. Akira only shook his head in worry for his friend's intelligence, wondering if he truly comprehends anything more than two syllabus long.

"Lavenza, this is Ryuji Sakamoto; the team's fastest runner and loudspeaker." Akira introduced with a few quick descriptions, trying his best to avoid the obviously bad points. "Ryuji, this is Lavenza, remember it this time. As you know, she's the girl who shouted at you back in the Velvet Room." He introduced with a little tease for both parties, which Lavenza reacted by pouting and giving him a light smack on his arm, causing Akira to laugh while playfully patting her head to calm her down.

"Broooo, why didn't you introduce her to us earlier. We coulda' gotten another cute teammate in the Metaverse." Ryuji interrogated Akira, unsatisfied that he had hidden a beauty away from him until now.

Akira's face slightly cramped as he imagined having Lavenza in the team, most likely able to steamroll through entire hordes of shadow if he were to assume she has the combined powers of the twins.

"If you think she's just another pretty-face, you are so wrong pal." Akira warned, slightly tempted to see how would the rest of thieves would actually fare off against her.

"…Really?" Ryuji whispered to Akira, still assuming that the petite girl only provided a support role and wasn't capable of proper combat.

"Really, really." Akira nodded, showing a slicing gesture across his neck with his thumb.

"Damn… I thought she would have skills like Futaba and stayed on the backlines." Ryuji muttered as he backtracked. "Why're the girls around us so tough!" He protested, cursing the cruel fate that the ladies around him were all femme fatales in their own respective rights.

"Is it not good to be tough?" Lavenza asked as she watched Ryuji slump out of the kitchen, wondering at his parting statement.

"Err… It depends, I guess?" Akira wasn't exactly sure how he could explain this. "I guess it's every man's fantasy to be able to save his princess in distress." While Akira certainly didn't mind the opportunity to show off his strengths to the girl of his dreams, having to save someone every single time would get tiresome real quickly.

"I see… But Akira, you did save me when I was trapped by the evil god." Lavenza beamed happily at him, always proud of her trickster that had managed to overcome all odds. Akira nearly gave the girl a tight hug at her cuteness, but decided to restrain himself in front of the others.

"That I did. Come on, there's still the rest." Akira led Lavenza back out to the dining area, where everyone was sporadically scattered about and talking among their own groups. Yusuke was helping himself to some of the fried chicken wings when he spotted the two exit the kitchen.

"Not eating?" Yusuke asked as he noticed the two of them not even holding onto any food.

"Later. Anyway, this is Yusuke Kitagawa; the team's dedicated artist, eccentric and inari sushi lover. We should go see some of his art exhibits soon." Yusuke frowned at the word 'eccentric', completely missing the 'inari sushi lover' joke.

"Well met. Say, would you allow me to do a painting of you?" Yusuke asked while ignoring Akira's joke, trying to picture her image in a frame using his fingers.

"I do not really understand, but... sure?" Lavenza readily agreed, not understanding why he would want her to model for a painting and it wouldn't hurt her to help. Akira mentally made a reminder to acquire a copy of the painting if Yusuke ever finishes it.

"Now just wait a goddamn minute!" Ann immediately butted into the conversation and pulled on Yusuke's collar, causing him to struggle against her grasp. "Don't tell me you are actually asking her to model for you nude." Ann coldly threatened the artist, ready to skin him if he was trying something funny on the unsuspecting girl.

"N-No! You've misunderstood! I only asked for a simple painting." Yusuke begged for his life, knowing full well the running gag and trauma of asking for a nude painting among the thieves. Ann stared at Akira and Lavenza to confirm whether he was telling the truth, which they both hurriedly nodded. The panther eyed Yusuke for a short moment before deciding to release her victim.

"Lavenza, right? It's nice to meet you! Wow... you really are pretty when I look up close." The model's attitude took a complete one-eighty as she bent down slightly to address the girl, impressed that she had a perfect complexion and no need of any makeups.

"This is Ann Takamaki; professional model to be and best actor in the neighbourhood, certified by Yusuke." Akira sneered as he emphasised the Actor part, causing Yusuke who was behind Ann to snicker quietly.

"Oh, isn't she the lady in the fashion magazines that you have showed me?" Lavenza asked as she recalled the well-dressed foreign looking model that Akira had occasionally showed her back in the cell.

"E-Eh? You actually showed her magazines that I was in?" Ann asked in surprise, not expecting Akira to actually show someone else magazines she was featured in.

"Yea, why not? I wanted to see how other attires would fit on her, taking that you two have pretty similar features." Akira attested while pointing to his own hair and skin.

"That's true. They can even pass off as sisters." Yusuke joined in as well, noting that if anyone ignored the difference in eye colours, Ann and Lavenza can be easily misidentified as sisters.

"Really? You think so?" Ann was getting weirdly enthusiastic at getting a 'younger sister', immediately squatting down so that their faces would be at the same height. Akira took out his smartphone and took a quick snapshot, Yusuke went around and looked at the photo with him, both nodding in approval as they appraised the photo.

"Wow, it's true!" Ann exclaimed when she was shown the picture of two girls with nearly identical blonde coloured hair and fairer skin tone. "Can I like, bring her home?" Ann jokingly asked as she hugged the girl as though she was some stuffed toy.

"No." Akira denied her request and pat Lavenza's head, who was looking a little uncomfortable being hugged by a person she wasn't familiar with.

"Aww! Stingy!" Ann grumbled while playfully sticking her tongue at Akira. He retaliated by lightly booping on her forehead and pushing her face away from the distressed Lavenza.

"You people create a din wherever you go, huh?" Makoto had approached them while they had been horsing around.

"Hehe, sorry." Ann freed the girl from her embrace and went up to Makoto, showing her the photo on Akira's phone. "See? We look alike right?" Ann excitedly asked Makoto, who was reeling back a little at her excitement.

"Lavenza, this is Makoto Nijima; the thieves' trusted advisor, honours student and Post-Apocalyptic Raider." Akira was starting to enjoy using weird inside jokes and titles to introduce his friends.

"Post-Apocalyptic Raider? Fist of the North Star?" Lavenza wondered at what Akira was referencing to when he mentioned a certain fictional character from a manga. Akira mentally rejoiced at his correct decision in lending the manga to Lavenza to read.

Ann and Yusuke began laughing, surprised that the new girl understood the nickname they always used to tease Makoto's haughty ride and fighting style. Makoto trembled in fury as she glared at Akira, who was barely able to keep a straight face, knowing full well that he had somehow managed to bait out that nickname from the girl.

"A-KI-RA?" Makoto was smiling as she approached him, cracking her knuckles. _That's probably one of the deadliest smiles I've ever seen._ Akira mused while trying to back away from the angered 'biker' girl. To everyone's surprise, Lavenza swiftly placed herself in front of Akira, as though protecting him from Makoto. She was frowning and looking upwards at Makoto due to their height difference, with her hands spread out wide as though blocking her way.

The four of them stood still as they processed the image of a young girl stepping forth to protect their valiant leader of the Phantom Thieves. Makoto was the first to break out laughing, with the rest following suite soon after. Lavenza drooped her hands down in confusion as she observed the quick change of mood around her.

"Now now." Akira bent down slightly and wrapped his arms around her shoulder, giving her a playful shake. "She's just messing with me, daily Phantom Thief shenanigans." Akira winked at Makoto playfully, knowing full well that their advisor would not be able to punish him as long as Lavenza was around.

"Y-Yea…" Makoto fumbled a little, having trouble switching her mood so quickly. "I wasn't going to really hit him." Makoto assured the girl who was still staring at her, trying to remove her violent impression.

"Go on, give her a friendly greeting." Akira lightly nudged Lavenza forward, trying to convince her that Makoto didn't have any bad intentions. The girl took a few small steps forward and proceeded with her polite greeting again.

"It is nice to meet you, Makoto." She performed her perfect curtsy as gracefully as ever, thinking that Haru would probably be the only one who would be familiar with upper class etiquette.

"It's nice to meet you too." Makoto returned the greeting and bent down a little, giving the girl a gentle head pat. Akira chuckled, glad that any hostilities between them had been resolved.

"Now, excuse me while I grab more of Boss's curry." Yusuke excused himself from the conversation and proceeded to the kitchen.

"Make sure you eat more alright? Boss's curry is absolutely delicious, you have to try it!" Ann exclaimed before following behind Yusuke, eager to get more curry for herself too.

"Would you like me to help you two take some food as well?" Makoto asked as she stood back up straight, offering her help to the two who were busy going around.

"Nah, it's alright. I don't think the curry's going to finish anytime soon." Akira shook his head as he urged Lavenza towards the team mascot, who was busy with his own bowl of cat treats on the counter table. Makoto smiled as she followed the two who had went to the kitchen before her. Morgana's ears perked up as it heard the two approaching, turning to face them before they even started speaking.

"It is good to see you. I hope that you have been well." Lavenza greeted Morgana, both bowing their heads slightly to each other.

"Yes, Lavenza. How about you?" Morgana asked unusually politely, even way more than he always did when talking to his 'Lady Ann'.

"I am well, the past few months in this world have taught me many things." She happily mentioned while smiling at Akira.

"Few months?" Morgana momentarily wondered if he had heard wrongly. "Nah, it doesn't matter. Anyway, are you here to take me back?" Morgana asked, unsure of his creator's intentions of suddenly appearing before him.

"No, you are your own being. Master nor I shall intrude upon your wishes to remain here." Lavenza stated, she had no intentions nor further instructions on dealing with him. After all, the only reason she came to the real world was to spend time with Akira.

"Really? Wow…" The cat muttered under his own breath, glad that he wouldn't be taken away to the other world and separated from his friends again.

"Isn't that good?" Futaba suddenly approached from Morgana's back and began tugging at his ears playfully, causing the cat to meow in annoyance at her rough caress.

"Oh, hey Futaba." Akira greeted, surprised at her sudden arrival. "Lavenza, this is Futaba Sakura; the team's genius hacker, play-by-play announcer and Sojiro's daughter." Akira summarised her character with three precise pointers.

"Really? Announcer?" Futaba repeated sarcastically at that dubious introduction.

"It's nice to meet you, Futaba-sama. I will be in your care." Lavenza surprised Akira and Futaba with the overly polite greeting and honorific.

"Sama!? No no no, there's no need for that, just Futaba will do." Futaba corrected the girl in a panic, the only times she had been addressed as such was by customer services or when postal packages arrive with her name printed on the addressee's section.

"She greeted me with that as well. *sigh*" Sojiro sighed as he placed a plate of grilled fish that he specially prepared for Morgana. The cat immediately broke out of Futaba's clutches and dived into the plate of grilled fish, abandoning his cat treats and everyone else in the conversation.

"Really? Sojiro-sama? Hahaha! That sounds soooo cool!" Futaba laughed at a facepalming Sojiro, who stood there shaking his head.

"Was I wrong to address them as such?" Lavenza looked to Akira for confirmation, he had taught her that the honorific was reserved for people of importance that demanded a level of respect, but she had judged Akira's family to be deserving of it.

"Well, you are not wrong in a sense, it's just that they are uncomfortable with it." Akira smiled, giving her the assurance that she wasn't wrong. "Maybe you can address Futaba with her name only and keep Sojiro's as it is." Akira suggested, since Futaba obviously looked to be closer of age to Lavenza than Sojiro would.

"Futaba, Sojiro-sama, it's nice to meet you." Lavenza repeated her greetings just as he had suggested. Akira and Futaba snickered to themselves as they heard the 'Sojiro-sama' greeting, finding it especially funny to greet a crass old man with such an honorific.

"Urgh… I've had enough of this play." Sojiro walked away, unable to stand the overly uncomfortable level of respect.

"Did I anger him?" Lavenza asked worriedly as she tugged on Akira's sleeves.

"Nah, he's just being shy that a cute girl is addressing him like that." Akira could barely contain his laughter at this point. He had always enjoyed pulling one over Sojiro.

"Yea, Sojiro's just embarrassed, nothing to worry about!" Futaba added as she watched Sojiro retreat into the kitchen.

"Hey Akira! Stop hogging the new girl all for yourself and come join everyone!" Ryuji shouted as he and Yusuke brought out the clay pot from the kitchen, setting up the Phantom Thieves 'traditional' steamboat at one of the booths' table. Makoto and Haru trailed out behind them with trays filled with plates of fresh cuts of meats and vegetables.

Lavenza gazed at the exquisite assortment of food being brought out, surprised at the sheer variety and amount of food that made the prison food seem absolutely meagre.

"Let's go! 'Brother' and… 'Sister-in-Law'~" Futaba smirked at Akira as she headed towards the steamboat with her classic MWEHEHE laughter. Akira rolled his eyes in jest, knowing full well that the girl had already seen through him and was waiting for an explanation.

"Oh well. Let's go get some good food." Akira rubbed his stomach hungrily. Lavenza nodded cheerfully and tailed behind him as they headed towards the rest of the thieves that were already fighting over food at the steamboat.

* * *

TPO = Time, Place, Occasion.

Inari Sushi Lover = referencing to Yusuke's kitsune costume design and how Fried tofu is believed to be a favorite food of Japanese foxes, and an Inari-zushi roll has pointed corners that resemble fox ears, thus reinforcing the association. (See Wikipedia)

* * *

 **A/N : Okay this section ended up way longer in text then I actually imagined it to be. The game made this part seem so fast.**

 **I tried my best to get into character for everyone, but do forgive me if I got it wrong, I try to 'voice' them based on how I imagine them to be like. IF you have any tips on how to improve the way they talk, please do guide me.**

 **To those waiting for heartbreaks, it will be after the valentine's chapter.**


	5. Side story 1: Those that noticed

The television idly broadcasted the news as it filled the silence of the now quiet café. Futaba leisurely savoured her cup of coffee as she watched the two older males in her family keeping themselves busy in the kitchen, clearing up the aftermath of the rambunctious celebrations that had ended moments ago.

The thieves had offered to help in the clean-up, but was shooed away by Sojiro with the excuse that they wouldn't make it for the last train if they stayed behind any longer. He had a questioning look when he noticed the girl in blue staying behind even though the rest of the thieves had already left, but had decided to leave her alone for the time being.

Futaba stole quick glances at the girl who was sitting beside her, obliviously enjoying her nth cup of latte that Futaba had lost count midway throughout the party. She had been observing the both of them ever since they entered the cafe together, noticing the fleeting looks that they gave each other whenever their eyes met, with occasional discreet smiles and gestures when nobody else was paying attention. She was even sticking to him when they went around making introductions, almost like a baby chick following a mother hen.

Even now the girl was watching Akira hard at work in the kitchen with an earnest smile on her face, smiling extra brightly at him whenever he had looked towards their general direction. While Futaba wasn't exactly proficient with social cues and interpersonal relations, it didn't take a genius to figure out that the both of them shared feelings for each other.

Futaba sighed dejectedly, somewhat disappointed that the position of being the closest female to Akira had been so stealthily usurped by someone outside of their clique, furthermore without any prior hints nor warnings at all. She thought that she had always been the one closest to Akira, since she was the only female in the team that actually receives skinship (head pats) from him and he had always approached her first if he needed consultation on any issues, be it personal or Phantom Thief related.

" _Because we're teammates."_

Futaba recalled the time when she had attempted to confess to Akira. She had mustered her courage to approach him about her feelings, but was tactfully turned down even before she could ask the important question. Surely she had felt heartbroken about it, but didn't allow herself to resent him nor wallow in self-pity once more. Fortunately, both parties had strived to maintain their friendship and did their best not to be too awkward around each other in the earlier days.

But during his time in LeBlanc, their unique relationship together with Sojiro had somehow diverged towards from being mere friends and changed into being a foster family of sorts. And she thoroughly enjoyed her new position as his 'sister', which conveniently gave her an excuse to be closer to him than the others in the team.

But even so, she wasn't exactly going to play the cliché 'oppressive sister-in-law' role now and give them a hard time. She was actually glad that Akira had finally found himself a partner.

Although unfortunate that it wasn't her.

Guessing that Akira had the intention of having her stay the night with him since the girl wasn't even budging from her seat at this point in time, Futaba leered at Akira teasingly as she imagined the 'plans' that he was planning for the girl tonight. She simply HAD to get all the juicy details from the girl herself, while her 'guardian' was occupied at the moment. Snickering to herself as she concocted her grand plana, Futaba proceeded with her mission on gathering more 'blackmail material' about Akira.

"Sojiro! Can she stay overnight?" Futaba took the initiative to ask after she checked the timing for the last trains, confirming that there wasn't any more transport out of the remote Yongenjaya. She figured that requesting this as a girl and as his daughter would bring about a preferable response than having Akira ask himself, and Sojiro has always been soft on her.

"What? It's that late already?" Sojiro asked as he checked the clock on the wall, bringing out a tray of cleanly washed cups back to the counter. "Hmm, won't your parents worry, young lady?" Sojiro asked as Akira emerged from the kitchen, wiping his wet hands with his apron. He eyed Futaba sceptically as she sneered at him, blatantly showing the fact that she was up to something mischievous once again.

"No. There's no need to worry about that." Lavenza replied, looking up from the beverage that had been placating her boredom. Sojiro scratched his head hesitatingly, understanding that most people related to thieves had their own special circumstances, but he couldn't help but worry about her because of her physical appearance of a young teen.

"Then it's settled! Then we shall stay here a little longer and play games late till morning! Kekeke…" Futaba immediately interrupted Sojiro before he had a change of mind, bouncing off her chair and immediately tugged at Lavenza's hands, urging her off the chair. Lavenza obliged and gingerly trailed after the girl who was tightly holding onto her, stumbling in her steps as she was dragged away to Akira's attic room by an overly enthusiastic Futaba. She gave provocative glance at Akira before she pulled the poor girl up the stairs to his room.

* * *

Futaba guided Lavenza to Akira's bed and unreservedly plonked herself onto it, motioning for the girl to sit beside her. She nodded and politely lowered herself on to the soft bed as she smoothed the skirt of her dress underneath her legs.

"So? So? It's Akira's room, how is it?" Futaba cheerfully egged the girl about her opinion of her boyfriend's room, wanting to tease Akira if she made any weird observations.

"It's big?" Lavenza tilted her head as she commented. "I can smell the coffee from downstairs as well." She smiled as she looked around the rustic room, apparently finding it a comfortable room despite its rundown state when compared to modern furniture.

"That's all!?" Futaba immediately retorted with a tsukkomi-like response, thinking that girls would normally show more interest in their boyfriend's room, like wanting to know about where his 'secret stash' was or about his internet search history that he may forget to delete. Lavenza only stared at her curiously, not understanding why Futaba had such an agitated response.

"W-well... anyway, how long has it been since you two met?" Futaba decided to gloss over Lavenza's weird opinion for the time being, prioritising her interrogation before Akira returns. This was her best chance of getting answers out of the girl without him attempting to censor anything.

"Umm..." Futaba watched the girl as she contemplated her answer carefully, not entirely sure why it would take her so much trouble to recall the date that they had met.

"Around April last year I suppose? Although it wasn't in this form..." Lavenza had answered while using her fingers to count back the months, mumbling and trailing off at the second part to the answer. But the distance between then was close enough that Futaba could easily hear it even without straining her ears.

 _'This form'? What's she talking about? Is she Fri*za from Drag**ball?_ Futaba almost made another tsukkomi aloud, suspecting that they weren't on the same frequency. Lavenza seemed so pure and honest that Futaba actually felt bad for trying to nudge out explicit details from her.

 _Wait, if she knew him from April... Would this mean they knew each other even before the Phantom Thieves were formed?_ Futaba immediately halted all of her horseplay and repeated Lavenza's reply in her head. She was certain that Akira had never mentioned about Lavenza's involvement in the Phantom Thieves, and it was pure coincidence that they had met in the place called the Velvet Room. Neither did she hear about a fifth member that was involved in Kamoshida's case, recalling that it had only been Akira, Ryuji, Ann and Morgana.

"Wow! That's long!" Futaba gave a superficial response as she was busy searching her memory for any possible details, making a mental note to grill Akira for a full explanation later. "Next question! How long have you guys been together for?" Futaba directly dived into the topic she wanted to discuss the most, estimating that this would be her last question as she heard Akira closing the shop up downstairs.

"Together?" Lavenza tilted her head with a confused reaction, as though wondering if her relationship with Akira could be classified as such. Futaba momentarily questioned whether she had been mistaken about their relationship. _Eh? But Akira didn't deny about her being a sister-in-law. Was I wrong?_ Her thoughts immediately went into a fluster, she was almost certain after observing their attitude that they had something going on.

"I suppose for about two months?" Lavenza tilted her head in further confusion as she used her fingers to count back the months again.

"What?" Futaba couldn't believe her ears at what she was hearing. Although she was surprised that they had only gotten together so recently even though they had known each other for some time, an even more critical question had been raised after hearing her answer.

 _Wasn't he still imprisoned two months ago?_ Futaba recalled that only Sae had went to visit him at the Juvenile Hall and she had had not informed them of any news about Akira having other visitors as well, neither could she think of any possible reason for Lavenza to lie about the duration. Even so, she could have lied about a more plausible date before Akira had been incarcerated.

Her curiosity urged her to extract more details from the girl, but before she could ask any more questions, a guy with ruffled black hair had appeared at the entrance to the room, carrying a tray of drinks and biscuits.

* * *

The thieves boarded the last train from Yongenjaya to Shibuya, each taking a random seat in the vacant late night train that was devoid of the usual Tokyo crowd. They would usually cause more of a ruckus when they travelled as a group, but they were especially worn out today after waiting all day for Akira's release and the subsequent all-out partying back at LeBlanc.

Makoto heaved a sigh as she leaned onto the train seat, releasing the tension in her body ever since she had personally laid eyes on Akira after his safe return. It felt as though all the stress for the past few months had finally released her from its grasps.

Ann and Ryuji were still energetically chatting away about their future plans since Akira had already returned, planning to make up for the time lost that they have missed during Christmas and New Year's celebrations. Haru quietly dozed off beside Makoto while retaining her poise, sitting upright and unconsciously making sure she didn't slouch over so that she didn't look unglamorous. Yusuke was daydreaming in his own world as per usual.

Makoto could only chuckle at the fact that Sojiro was perfectly right about them, that they had not changed a single bit even after the world had changed due to their actions.

She had been worried about Akira being badly influenced by life inside confinement. But contrary to her worries, he returned as cheerful and cheeky as always, as though he hadn't been arrested at all.

Makoto felt nostalgic when the entire group had forgotten themselves in the celebrations, cheering and laughing without a care in the world. It was just like when the entire group had spent hours messing around in Mementos until they didn't feel any more surprise whenever a certain gigantic humanoid shadow emerged to hunt them down. The impromptu curry picnic they had organised in the depths of Mementos still made Makoto question everyone's sanity up till today.

All would have been great if she could just revel in the celebrations and immerse herself in the cheerful mood. But a creeping sense of unrest had stirred in Makoto's heart when she had observed a slight change in Akira.

It was the first time he had smiled so warmly at someone else.

As hard as she tried, Makoto couldn't recall a time when she had seen him act so affectionately towards anyone, be it from the team or his outside confidants that she knows of. And she felt a tinge of envy that she wasn't at the receiving end of it.

Makoto first knew Akira by his infamy in school because of the rumours of assault charges and expulsion around him. It was then that she had also labelled him as a troublemaker and made sure to avoid him just like the student body did. She didn't want to be involved with a troublemaker.

How truly ignorant she had been.

Little did she know then that she would now regard him as one of the most important people in her life. Be it changing her entire world or supporting her through her toughest moments, she could daresay her life today is mostly thanks to Akira's involvement.

He had always strived to be a kind and reliable leader for the Phantom Thieves, even though they had forcefully pushed the role onto him. She could never forget that Akira had always offered his support in her greatest hour of need, and she was grateful for that.

His charm was so evident that every girl in the thieves had the hots for him and it wasn't even a secret among the girls that they were all vying for his affections. Even Makoto was so head-over-heels for him that she still hadn't let go of her feelings after all this time, even though he had not shown any romantic interest towards her.

But the sight of Akira treating someone else so tenderly threw her feelings into disarray, the sincere smile and loving gaze that wasn't meant for her only caused the yearning in her heart to grow stronger.

Makoto thought Akira had shown her many new experiences and feelings that she might never know of while buried in her studies, but the emotions that she was harbouring in her heart were completely unknown to her.

And it scared her.

Maybe she will learn about it someday, maybe she will never understand it in this life time.

But the one thing she wanted to know at this moment-

-was his feelings.

* * *

 **A/N : I'M STILL TRYING TO FLESH OUT THE DIABEETUS-FILLED VALENTINE'S DATE, SO HERE'S A SIDE STORY TO KEEP YOU GUYS SATISFIED.**

 **(And yes, it's a Futaba POV and Makoto POV side story, that follows up on the previous chapter.)**


	6. Chapter 5: Blindsided Approach

*Beep Beep Beep!* *Beep Beep Beep!*

Akira woke up to the sound of his phone alarm beeping, rubbing his sore eyes that was hurting from the bright sunlight that was seeping through the windows. Sitting up from the sofa, Akira stretched his aching neck and massaged his sore shoulders, he had yielded the comfortable bed to the girls and decided to sleep on the old sofa instead. _Anything beats the bed back in prison, I guess._ Akira mused jokingly as he appreciated his first morning after being released.

Getting off the sofa and lazily shuffling his feet, he went around to the work desk and habitually wore his favourite glasses, even though he didn't really need it. With a tired grunt, Akira lethargically slid open the cranky wooden-framed windows to allow the fresh morning air in. Taking a deep breath to revitalise himself, Akira could smell the aroma of coffee wafting from downstairs.

*Kushu!* A cute sneeze soon came from the direction of the bed.

Akira looked over only to see the girls clumsily sprawling over each other. Futaba had somehow interlocked her limbs with Lavenza's body, resembling a sloth that was hugging a tree trunk. Lavenza was unconsciously rubbing her nose with one of her free hands, while the other was futilely pushing away Futaba who was nibbling onto one of her ears.

Akira chuckled as he picked up the forsaken blanket that had been kicked off the bed, spreading the warm fabric over them and making sure they were covered properly.

After brushing his teeth and freshening up in the washroom, Akira quickly changed into his casual long sleeves and jeans that he usually wore while in LeBlanc and proceeded to the café section where Sojiro was already preparing the store for business. He was surprised when Morgana was already absent from his room when he woke up, but the rascal was already downstairs and digging into his bowl of new cat treats that Sojiro have prepared. _For all his complains about not being treated as a cat…_ Akira wanted to retort that he was one-hundred percent 'cat' at the moment.

"Oh. You're awake. " Sojiro lazily raised his coffee cup while greeting him, presently occupied with a Sudoku puzzle on a magazine. The lights of the café were already all turned on and the kitchen was already prepped and raring to go.

"Yea...*Yawn*" Akira yawned as he replied, taking a seat beside Sojiro by the counter. He poured himself some coffee from the flask that Sojiro had brewed, savouring the delightful warmth that coursed through his body.

"So, what are you planning to do now?" Sojiro asked as he put the puzzle aside for the moment and headed into the kitchen.

"Well… I haven't really thought about it." Akira laughed worriedly as he scratched his head. His unexpected early release hadn't really gave him the time to plan ahead. "How about school?" Akira asked, although just realising that he would be late for school even if he left the house now.

"Nijima already processed your transfer when you were locked up, under the excuse that you were returning home." Sojiro returned to the counter with a plate of nostalgic breakfast curry and handed it to Akira, where he gratefully received it.

"Thanks. Hm, then all that's left is to wait out till the probation transfer ends. Ittadakimasu." Akira thanked Sojiro for the food and started on his breakfast, relishing in the divine taste that outclassed the pitiful breakfast in the Juvie Hall.

"Then why not help out in the store whenever you can? It's not like you have anything better to do." Sojiro asked as he sat back down on his seat and resumed with his puzzle.

"I guess that beats loitering around and doing nothing." Akira casually agreed. It was a more productive way to spend the time, although he had no desperate need of cash, probably even enough for many years to come. The amount he had earned through his Phantom Thief stint had already surpassed a few million Yen and the remaining amount was still nothing to scoff at.

Reminding himself to talk to the rest about the leftover cash, Akira finished up his breakfast and helped to prepare for the café's opening.

* * *

"Yahoo!" Futaba finally emerged from upstairs when it passed noon. She was already dressed back in her usual jacket, with one of her usual graphic tees and denims. Lavenza came down dressed in a similar attire, although without the jacket, probably one of Futaba's spares that she had kept in his room.

Akira had long ago resigned himself to the fact that she actually kept HER clothes in HIS room.

Even though he was mentally complaining about Futaba's choice of attire for Lavenza, it was nice seeing the girl out of her usual blue dress. Akira had only offered her his tee-shirts when they were in the cell, but it somehow turned out inappropriately erotic when she wore it, capriciously having its hem hanging over her mid-thigh. _Maybe she would not be stared at so much when she's dressed like a normal person._ Akira thought, guessing that maybe it was her classy attire that attracted even more attention on top of her good looks.

"Good afternoon Akira, Sojiro-sama." Lavenza shyly bowed as she greeted the two guys, trailing shortly behind Futaba. "My apologies for the late greetings…" She timidly apologised for the fact that she had slept in too much and had woke up late.

Akira smiled warmly at Lavenza as he placed two plates of curry before the girls as they took their seats by the counter. He chuckled to himself when he noticed that Lavenza had visibly cheered up when she saw the plate of curry placed before her.

"Ittadakimasu." The both of them energetically their thanks for the food before heartily tucking in. Sojiro smirked as he saw them eating, bringing out a tray of cleanly washed ceramic cups from the kitchen.

"Feels like I've got another daughter when I look at them." Sojiro casually joked as he used a clean white cloth to wipe the cups dry.

"Well, she will soon be your daughter-in-law." Futaba nonchalantly replied, causing Sojiro to immediately freeze up at her surprising comment.

"W-wait... D-D-aughter-in-law?" Sojiro stammered like a broken robot. "You mean you two are?" Sojiro frantically looked left and right at each girl. Akira wanted to laugh at the panicking Sojiro, who had somehow gotten the wrong idea.

"Not me, him." Futaba deadpanned while she rolled her eyes at the old man. Akira could nearly hear Sojiro's neck creaking as he turned to look at him.

"..." Sojiro stared at Akira for a moment before turning towards Futaba again. "Really?" Sojiro questioned his foster daughter for confirmation, hoping that he hadn't misheard her.

"Really." Futaba didn't even bother looking up from her curry while she replied to his question. Sojiro dumbly stared at Lavenza while trying to internally process the piece of information that he had just heard. She curiously looked up when she noticed that the conversation had come to a standstill and noticed the old man looking straight at her.

"You sure you're alright with a guy like him?" Sojiro curiously asked her the moment he noticed she was looking at him with a curious look on her face. Akira scowled at Sojiro for the unnecessary sarcasm in his question.

"Yes, Sojiro-sama. Instead, I hope that Akira would be the one who's alright with me." Lavenza politely placed her cutlery down as she seriously answered Sojiro's joking question, smiling sweetly at Akira as though trying to relief his worries. Akira looked away as he blushed slightly at the unexpected offensive from the usually meek girl. Sojiro cringed as he witness the entire affair and he mockingly faked a gag as though he was about to puke sugar.

"Geez. She's way too high level for you, Akira." Sojiro shook his head as he turned around, patting Akira on his shoulder as he retreated back into the kitchen and leaving the youngsters on their own.

"So?" Akira cleared his throat as he resumed the conversation. "What're your plans for today?" Akira asked as he watched Lavenza happily resuming her brunch, while Futaba hadn't even stopped for a moment.

"Oh! I promised Lavenza-chan that I will be bringing her out for shopping." Futaba excitedly mentioned, recalling that she had not informed Akira about their plans. "But Haru's coming to pick us up for shopping though." She took out her phone and began searching for the relevant text messages.

 _Picking up? After School?_ Akira felt slightly worried about them, but he held back from asking if they would be alright with just the both of them. _At least Haru is following them as a chaperone._ But before Akira could ask for more details, the doorbell jingled as a familiar customer walked in.

"Oh, hello." Haru waved happily as she entered the shop, she was still dressed in her winter uniform with her usual pink turtleneck cardigan. "I rushed over after school ended, but... Am I late?" Haru tilted her head slightly as she watched the two eating what she assumed was lunch.

"Hey Haru. Sorry for troubling you." Akira casually motioned for Haru to take a seat at the counter, which she obliged. "Nah, you're early, that's breakfast." He laughed while preparing a complimentary cup of coffee for the usual repeat customer.

"Oh no, it wasn't any trouble." Haru smiled as she sat beside the girls. "Futaba texted last night for some shopping help. It was so sudden though…" Haru laughed as she patted Futaba's head, the latter sluggishly trying to struggle away without breaking off from her curry.

"Thanks Haru." Akira smiled in appreciation for her help, as she had always been the helpful and caring senior of the group. "Here you go." Akira passed to her a cup of long black coffee that had been perfectly adjusted to her tastes after so many visits.

"You're welcome. And, thank you." Haru gratefully thanked the young man as she received her favourite cup of coffee with a smile on her face.

Akira had totally forgot that Lavenza only had whatever was on her when she had left the Velvet room, and had gotten used to the habit of just lending her whatever spare clothes that he had while she accompanied him in the cell. _Certainly a girl would feel better if she has her own pretty clothes._ Akira sighed at the fact that he had completely overlooked that fact even though she hadn't complained even once.

"How much do you think she'll need?" Akira took out his wallet and fiddled with several 10,000 Yen notes, unsure how much women clothing would cost when compared to men's.

"It's okay. I can pay for them first." Haru smiled while stopping Akira from handing her too much cash. Akira held back on being overly-insistent, knowing that the rich ojou-sama was weirdly stubborn even though she look completely meek on the outside.

"Thanks. Then if you could, help her get these, along with other necessities as well." Akira tore off a page from a notepad by the public telephone's side and began writing down a list of things that she may need. "Get Futaba to help you." Akira mentioned while handing over the slip of paper.

"Hmm~" Haru hummed as she glanced through the list. "I see…" Haru muttered while eyeing him suspiciously. Akira could feel the cold sweat on his back as she tried to discern his thoughts from his expression.

"Tell me soon, alright?" Haru grinned as she dropped the subject, waiting till the exact moment the two of them had finished with their food. Akira could only roll his eyes in response to her usual teasing-sadistic side that he had already gotten used to.

"Shall we?" Haru asked as the two bounced off their seats in confirmation. Lavenza offered to bring Futaba's empty plate to the kitchen while the geek excitedly ran back up to the bedroom to grab their valuables.

"Thanks Akira. The coffee's great as always." Haru thanked Akira again for the wonderful coffee, while grinning cheekily at him as she slowly walked out of the café. Futaba appeared back in the café and was soon on her trail shortly after.

"I'm off! Bye Sojiro! Bye Akira!" Futaba cheerfully shouted as she bolted across the café and followed behind Haru as they went outside the café to wait.

"Lavenza." Akira beckoned the girl as she trotted out of the kitchen. "Make sure to be careful, alright? Don't get separated from them." Akira bent down slightly and patted her head as she nodded happily, slightly bouncing as though impatiently waiting to follow after them.

"Alright. Have fun!" Akira watched Lavenza as she skipped out of the café cheerfully as she followed the other two, returning back to his usual work once the café returned back to its usual silence.

* * *

Akira turned around from the door and prepared himself to join Sojiro back in the kitchen with the preparations for the incoming lunch crowd. He went back to the counter and picked up the empty cup of coffee that Haru had left behind, before giving the table a quick wipe from any food or drink stains. But before he could even make progress into the kitchen, the doorbell jingled once again, interrupting him from proceeding further.

"Welcome! A table fo-?" Akira enthusiastically turned around to greet his new customer, but was dumbfounded when he noticed that it was Haru who had suddenly came back.

"Haru? Forgot something?" Akira jokingly asked as he went around the counter to put down the cup and cloth that he was holding.

"Yes. In fact I did." Haru smiled coolly as she headed towards where Akira was, standing across him from opposite the counter.

"Haru?" Akira asked, wondering if there was anything she wanted.

"Akira." Haru called out to him suddenly, causing him to tense up unconsciously. While Akira had already been friends with her for some time, there were only a certain number of times that he had felt such pressure emanating from her, and those times were when she was being serious in a conversation or rampaging among shadows back in the Metaverse.

"Y-Yes?" Akira nervously stuttered, unsure about what Haru wanted from him that made her come back even though she had left earlier. But as though noticing his excessive paranoia to her change in attitude, Haru smiled at him mischievously, hiding her hands behind her back the entire time.

"Akira, Happy Valentine's Day!" Haru playfully placed the gift on the table, which was wrapped with a simple pink wrapper secured with a red ribbon that was tied along the opening. Akira dumbly stared at the gift she had just presented, completely confused at the entire flow of events.

"Okay, that's all! Bye bye!" Haru smiled devilishly as she whirled around and proceeded to head out of the café once again, happily bouncing in her steps as she successfully pulled one over on Akira. Luckily, he managed to reboot himself before she had actually walked out.

"T-thanks for the gift!" Akira offered his gratitude gratefully at the unexpected gift, although he was still unsure about how to answer to her feelings, even though their relationship had no significant changes ever since he had turned her down.

"Sure, you're welcome." Haru smiled demurely and waved goodbye to him before opening the door and heading out of the café. But before she closed the doors of the café, Haru turned around with another mischievous grin on her face.

"It's a Honmei-Choco!"

Was the last thing that Akira heard, before the Beauty Thief swiftly closed the door and disappeared back into the streets of Yongenjaya.

* * *

 **Notes : Valentine's Day Chocolates in Japan are usually categorised into 2 main types :**

 **1) Giri chocolate (Obligatory chocolates; for friends, co-workers, no romantic feelings)**

 **2) Honmei chocolates (True-Feelings chocolates; for lovers, bfs, romantic partners). Go google search for more info.**

* * *

 **A/N: REJOICE! IT'S A NEW CHAPTER.**

 **Sorry for the lateness (mandatory apology)**

 **I actually didn't feel really motivated to carry on with the story because I felt lost on how to display each characters personality and style and that made me feel like I was constantly OOC-ing. But oh well, might as well try!**

 **Really thankful for all of you that fav-ed, follow-ed and review-ed this story. I hope to be in your care for a while longer.**

 **Please do not hesitate to review if I ever OOC or about something that you feel can be improved.**


	7. Chapter 6 : Heart to heart

A girl stood outside the brightly lit café, fidgeting slightly as she toyed with a sachet of freshly baked chocolates. She was flanked by two companions, one with hip length orange hair and the other with curly brown hair, the three of them huddling closely under the shine of a nearby lamppost.

"A-Are you sure?" The platinum-blonde girl hesitatingly asked, twirling around and inspecting her newly acquired outfit. A trendy sapphire blue skater dress, chic grey cardigan, and black wool scarf. Her usual loafers were now replaced with mid-calf high-heeled boots with matching black stockings.

"Reeeelax!" Futaba gave her a reassuring pat on her back as she dragged out her encouragement. "We spent all day shopping for these clothes, I'm sure Akira will like it!" Beaming at the masterpiece she and Haru had created, confident that she had at least learned a tip or two from those fashion magazines that they had used to tease the gorgeous Panther.

Haru could only listlessly laugh as she tiredly massaged her own sore shoulders. The girls had originally planned a simple outfit shopping session for the girl's Valentine's Day date tonight, but they had instead lost themselves to their excitement when they realised that their subject looked absolutely perfect in nearly any outfit they chose.

Futaba felt a sudden chill run up her spine when she recalled the crazed expression on Haru's face. The poor subject had taken her first step out of the changing room in an entirely brand new attire and all hell broke loose. She hurriedly pushed the memory into the back of her mind to prevent further trauma.

"I'm sure Akira will be happy to receive chocolates from you." Haru broke out of her muse and patted the girl's head encouragingly, which now donned a hairpin with a traditional butterfly motif instead of her usual headbands.

"Make sure he falls for you all over again." Futaba grinned while cheering happily, before whipping out her phone and fiddling with it. Haru chuckled as she quietly watched over the petite girl quietly contemplating as she tightened her clutch on her gift.

"Yosh!"Futaba cheered and stuffed her mobile back into her pockets. "Let's go!" Immediately barging into the café without waiting for her party's confirmation. Unprepared for Futaba's usual antics, Lavenza instinctively chased after her towards the café, but her legs immediately froze up right outside the door when she remembered that 'he' would be inside the café.

But before she even had the chance to hesitate even further, the caretaker of the group provided a reassuring pat on her back. Haru smiled radiantly as she gathered some of her strength and gave the girl a necessary nudge forward, as though promising her that everything will be fine.

Lavenza took a deep breath and bravely entered the warm café, locking eyes with the man of her destiny.

* * *

The café basked in a warm silence as the television droned on as it broadcasted repeated news articles that Akira did not really care about, sighing as he washed the remaining dishes that were used by the last customers. While he was extremely grateful that he was finally out of that hellhole, he certainly did not expect himself to be working while serving customers (couples) during Valentine's Day. He felt like crying.

"Oh right, today's Valentine's Day. No wonder there were so many guys bringing girls in here." Sojiro suddenly thought out aloud as though he had received some sort of divine revelation. Akira could almost barely control himself from rolling his eyes at that extremely late observation.

"Don't you have anything exciting happening? I mean, you've been here nearly a whole year." The boss of the café 'innocently' asked his only employee by the sink, with a cheeky grin that was out of sight to the lonely teen. Akira swore he could ALMOST feel the sarcasm from the older guy.

 _Must be my imagination._ He snorted in response, deciding to not give the old guy any more ammunition to tease him with at this point. He was confident that Sojiro had some inkling about his relationship dynamics within the group especially due to his close proximity to its members.

"Y'know, when I was young, hoo boy…" Sojiro decidedly went on boasting about his colourful teenage love life. Akira gagged a little by the sink, dying a little inside when he could not remove the mental image of girls fawning all over this crude and grumpy guy, who was probably even worse when he was in his hormonal teenage years.

A slight vibration from his pocket led him to take out his phone while ignoring the blabbering older guy.

 _FUTABA:_ "Door."

Was the entirety of the message displayed on Akira's relatively new smartphone. _What?_ Akira thought as he heard the doorbell chiming through the café, effectively grinding Sojiro's cringe-worthy ramble to a well-timed halt.

"YO!" Futaba leaped through the entrance and came to sliding stop in the middle of the café, grandiosely posing as one of the Phoenix Ranger Featherman R figures that Akira could recognise from her room. "Still working?" She asked, swinging down and pointing her index finger at Akira who was facepalming back in the kitchen.

"You didn't even bring me anything…" Sojiro grumbled disappointedly, but before he could further misunderstand and complicate things even further, Futaba interrupted him.

"Yours is at home! Let's go!" She immediately kidnapped a struggling Morgana and went around the counter to grab a confused Sojiro, dragging him out of the café much to his bewilderment.

Futaba glanced at Akira with a Cheshire grin plastered on her face, giving him a wink that stank of mischief before she disappeared out of the door. Akira stared dumbfounded at the entire fiasco, confused at what was happening as well. Even before he could recover, the next person that entered completely took his breath away.

The beauty entered the café, with the cold night wind lightly rustling her hair and hem of the dress as she strolled in. The streetlights that shone behind her illuminated her silhouette, making Akira think for a moment that an angel had arrived. He immediately neatened his attire and approached the demure girl that was smiling at him with her arms behind her back.

"I'm back." The girl greeted, slightly twirling her body around while looking up at him. Akira smiled as he knew exactly what she wanted to hear at this moment if his habit of trying to read Justine's usually hidden expressions was of any help.

"Welcome back." Akira stooped down a little and patted her head. The girl simply purred softly under his warm hands as she accepted his compliments.

"You look great with the new dress. It suits you." He praised her while admiring Futaba's and Haru's handiwork. _They sure went all-out._ He chuckled to himself, wondering how many shops they must have gone through to even coordinate her outfit.

He would get the full story from Futaba, but that was for tomorrow.

* * *

"Thanks for waiting." Akira placed a cup of fresh brew in front of his date before joining her at the booth, sitting directly across her. She wrapped her hands around the warm cup while relishing in the warmth that coursed through her fingers.

"I'm surprised though," Akira added. The girl slightly tilted her head sideways while wondering what he was talking about.

"Did Haru tell you about today?" Akira half-questioned and half-guessed. While he had provided a detailed explanation to her about the major festivities that were celebrated in Japan, he decided to skim through the holidays that he assumed to be 'not-so-important'.

Akira had simply assumed back then that there was no way he would feel like celebrating nor enjoy an event like Valentine's WHILE stuck inside juvie. So there wasn't a point to explain too much about it.

"Yes. Futaba whispered something to Haru-Onee-sama after we arrived at… Shibuya?" She momentarily paused, trying to recall the name of the place she was brought to.

 _ONEE-SAMA?_ It took all of Akira's mental fortitude to not retort at Lavenza's weird method of address to her chaperone. He was almost certain that Haru had laid this sneaky trap to surprise him tonight and was waiting in anticipation for his reaction. Her playful tendencies always surfaced at the weirdest moments.

"Anyway." She coughed into her hands in order to wave off the awkwardness. "The two of them became noticeably… excited right after that and explained today in detail." Akira smiled as he noticed a slight smile creeping onto Lavenza's face as she recalled the events.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself." Akira took a sip of his own coffee while expressing his delight that she seemed to be acclimating well to her new environment.

"Mmn!" She hummed in delight as she got out of her seat and went around to Akira's side, causing him to raise his eyebrows.

"This is my first time making this… But I will be happy if you will accept this!" To Akira's surprise, Lavenza had bowed down slightly while offering a blue heart-shaped box with both hands. A warm feeling filled his heart as he appreciated every bit of effort and energy that she had put into for today, just for him.

"I will gladly accept this." Akira politely took the gift from her hands and placed it on the table. Overjoyed at his acceptance of her gift, she straightened back up and beamed happily at him. To her surprise, Akira had a surprise ready in order to show his gratitude for her gift.

"Kya!" Lavenza made a soft cry when Akira confidently pulled her onto the seat beside him, where she was then engulfed in a comforting hug from him. She lightly struggled and pounded at his back due to her surprise, but soon melted into his warmth as she relished in the sense of comfort it brought to her heart and soul.

"Thank you." Akira whispered into her ears as closely as possible, secretly enjoying it when he felt the girl shuddering under his teasing. He could see her ears burning red as she tightened her own hug on him, pressing her face deeper into his shoulders to hide her shyness.

* * *

Her heart was racing madly.

She could feel herself blushing madly.

Spending time with her favourite trickster had always given her an excitement she never thought she could ever experience.

Every word that he spoke was music to her ears.

Every touch that he left behind made her feel like she was melting.

And all she ever want to do was to gaze into his mesmerising obsidian eyes forever, or as long as she possibly could.

But deep down, she reminded herself again that she must not let herself get distracted by his warmth right now. Admonishing herself that there would be enough time to relax (read as cuddle) later. There was something she had resolved to tell him, and now was a perfect chance to do so.

Gently breaking out of Akira's hug, she composed herself and looked into his eyes intently.

"I-" She started. "I would like to speak to you about something." As though sensing her intents, Akira quickly corrected his posture and faced her seriously.

"When I left the Velvet Room and came to this world, my only desire then was to be by your side." She began, taking Akira's silence as consent to proceed.

"It did not matter to me if you had ignored my existence entirely, nor if you later decided that I was a burden to you and only to cast me away. For this was a life that you had saved and thus, I am willing to offer the entirety of it to you." She gripped her new dress at its hem tightly as she felt her emotions beginning to stir.

"Nothing else mattered to me as long as I could stay with you. That was what I had decided." She drooped her head down slightly, breaking eye contact as she felt tears welling up for reasons she could not comprehend.

"A-and yet…" She trailed off, recalling her day in Shibuya with the girls.

 _The shopping trip was an eye-opener of her in many senses. Be it whether it was about her exposure to the physical world that she had always yearned for or the lessons taught to her by Akira, but there was one thing that caught her attention._

 _And that was how other couples behaved in this world. His world._

 _The casualness in their tone. The physical closeness. And the intimate acts of affection._

 _Whatever they had between them had been clearly lacking. For whatever reasons._

 _She felt a slight pang in her heart as she craved for his affection._

"Now… now I find myself selfishly wanting for more!" She confessed, trembling slightly as she faced a side of herself that she never knew existed. "Your touch, your gaze, your hugs. All of it…" Her face contorting in pain as the thought of losing everything roused a dark emotion within her, that tugged at her in all directions.

Akira was about to reach out to her, but she intercepted his hands and tightened her own grip on his, as though afraid to let go.

 _But as she stood amongst the crowd, she realised in trepidation about how alone she was in this world even though she was surrounded by people._

 _The mere thought of the life that she could possibly lose if she was to be separated from him._

Igor had warned her about the brightness of the human's world. But she had not realised that the darkness it cast would be so devastating, unlike her past life where she was safe within the confines of the Velvet Room.

 _How much she was missing the comfort and security that he brought her._

 _An innate hunger inside her craved for him more every passing day._

 _She knew that he held back in consideration for her, for everything he did was out of consideration for her._

 _It reminded her of the kind soul that she had met back in April, and still is now._

 _But she was no longer content with that._

"Just simply staying with you… is no longer enough!" Her voice hitched as her emotions peaked, revealing her inner thoughts bare. "I-I want to be standing beside you! As equals! Or lovers! Or maybe... maybe, as something even more! Till the very end..." She weakly begged as her wild emotions had drained her strength much more than she had expected.

The seconds of silence felt like years to her. Her heartbeats were so loud it was almost deafening.

"I'll always be with you…" Hearing her love responding as such brought her great relief after divulging her deepest desires. Only to find herself being pulled into a tight embrace as the two bodies trembled against each other, as though they were reacting to each other's emotions. She stiffened up in surprise as she stared into his eyes, a pair of dark orbs that had a burning passion that she had not seen before.

"I love you, Lavenza." He confessed, causing her to gawk while he quickly reduced the distance between them to zero.

The warmth that she felt on her lips brought her to tears again.

Happiness tasted like coffee.

* * *

Akira heaved a sigh of relief as he finished cleaning the café. It was a short while ago when he had realised that Sojiro had actually hightailed out of the café and left all the cleaning to him. _Sneaky old man._ Akira jokingly insulted his Boss even though it actually was his daughter's fault.

Tonight had certainly taken him on an emotional roller-coaster even though it had been so stagnant in the day. He certainly did not see this coming.

Lavenza's earlier confession had completely caught him by surprise. But if he had to admit, he was rather glad that she was finally being more honest about her emotions then compared to a few months ago.

While he had a fair understanding of a romantic relationship, he did not really know if his counterpart shared the same knowledge.

Not wanting to violate her personal comfort zones, he had slowly increased his physical skinship with her over time, but there was still a line he could not cross if she only comprehended their relationship on a platonic level.

But now they had finally addressed the elephant in the room.

Akira quickly roused himself out of his thoughts and went to the back of the café to turn off the lights when he was done. After calming Lavenza down, he had sent her upstairs to wash up first so that she could enjoy a long, hot bath to calm her nerves, while he had to clean up the café. He had promised to join her upstairs as soon as he was done.

That was his excuse.

He leaned on the back door and quietly sighed to himself.

"So?" He directed his question to the darkness calmly. Only to feel someone leaning on the door from the opposite side.

"So, what?" A feminine voice replied. Akira furrowed his eyebrows as he massaged his forehead, he could hear the girl trying to hide her giggle from him.

"Ha-" Deciding that he was exhausted enough today, he decided to call her out on her mischief.

"I was serious." The voice now as cold as steel, interrupting him and stunning him momentarily. "Who knows? I might be willing to share. Good night, Akira." She bode him farewell and left before he could stop her.

Akira sighed, deciding to put the issue on the back burner.

Everything else can be left until tomorrow.

Tonight was for Lavenza.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm back? (nervous)**

 **University actually started right after I posted the last chapter and I finally wrote after 2 trimesters.**

 **Got totally rekt last trimester. *Sobs***

 **Anyway, I'm thankful for everyone that is here/still here with me to enjoy a story about this pairing that I had started to write nearly a year ago.** **While I may not be the best writer out there, I will still try my best to deliver a solid story if possible.**

 **Maybe it was due to reading a lot of drama/hurt stories recently that I tried to write this chapter trying to emulate some sort of drama for Lavenza's Valentine's event.**

 **Well, mostly due to the fact that I felt that the canon valentines' events were actually quite good, but personally too much sugar for my own tastes.**

 **Do R &R this chapter as I have written this chapter across the pockets of time I had, so the format and style may not be consistent as I think it should be.**


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